LIBRARY 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 

RECEIVED    BY   EXCHANGE 

Class 


leport  of  Proceedings 


OF  THE 


AMERICAN 

MINING 

CONGRESS 


Fourteenth  Annual  Session 

Chicago, ML,  October  24«28,  1911 


Published   by   the   American   Mining   Congress 
At  «§«  Office  of  the  Secretary,  Denver,  Colo,,  1911 


Report  of  Proceedings 

of  the 

American  Mining 
Congress 

Fourteenth  Annual  Session 

Chicago,  111.,  Oct.  24-28 


*  *  *•  5  i  •  •  i 

•  t  •  •„•  »    •  •  *<•  •  " 


Published  by  the  American  Mining  Congress 

At  the  Office  of  the  Secretary,  Denver,  Colo.,  1911 


vstt) 


PREVIOUS  SESSIONS  OF  CONGRESS. 


DATE. 

CITY. 

PRESIDENT. 

ADDRESS. 

1st 

July, 

1897  1 

Denver,    Colo. 

Hon.   Alva  Adams, 

Pueblo,    Colo. 

1st 

July, 

1897 

Denver,    Colo. 

Hon.   L.   Bradford  Prince, 

Santa  Fe,    N.   M 

2nd 

July, 

1898 

Salt  Lake  City,  Utah. 

Hon.  L.   Bradford  Prince, 

Santa   Fe,    N.   M 

3rd 

July, 

1899  2 

Milwaukee,    Wis. 

Col.    B.   F.   Montgomery, 

Cripple    Creek, 

Colo. 

3rd 

June, 

1900 

Milwaukee,    Wis. 

Col.    B.   F.   Montgomery, 

Cripple    Creek, 

Colo. 

4th 

July, 

1901 

Boise,    Idaho. 

Hon.  L.  Bradford  Prince, 

Santa   Fe,    N.   M 

5th 

Sept.. 

1902 

Butte,    Mont. 

E.  L.  Shafner, 

Cleveland,    Ohio. 

6th 

Sept., 

1903 

Deadwood    and 

Lead,    S.   D. 

Hon.   J.   H.    Richards, 

Boise,    Idaho. 

7th 

Aug., 

1904 

Portland,  Ore. 

Hon.   J.   H.    Richards, 

Boise,    Idaho. 

8th 

Nov., 

1905 

El   p'aso,   Texas. 

Hon.   J.  H.    Richards, 

Boise.    Idaho. 

9th 

Oct., 

1906 

Denver,   Colo. 

Hon.  J.  H.    Richards. 

Boise,    Idaho. 

loth 

Nov., 

1907 

Joplin,   Mo. 

Hon.   J.   H.    Richards. 

Boise.    Idaho. 

llth 

Dec.. 

1908 

Pittsburgh,  Pa. 

Hon.   J.   II.    Richards. 

Boise.    Idaho. 

12th 

Oct., 

1909 

Goldfield,    Nov. 

Hon.   J.   II.    Richards, 

Boise,    Idaho. 

13th 

Oct.. 

1910 

Los  Angeles,   Cal. 

Dr.   E.   R.   Buckley. 

Rolla,    Mo. 

14th 

Oct.,  fc 

1911 

Chicago,    111. 

John  Dern, 

Salt  Lake  City, 

Utah. 

1  Temporary 

•     * 

•   ••...: 

• 

2  Passed  to 

June, 

1900.                                  ' 

'« 

INDEX 


Page 

Auditing  Committee,   Report  of 110 

Bituminous  Coal  Industry,  Discussion  on  Condition  of 61 

Complex  Ores,  Discussion  on  Treatment  of 70 

Directors,   Election   of 110 

Financial  Statement  _of  Secretary 100 

Members,  Annual  Meeting  of 100 

Members,  Adjourned  Meeting  of 108 

Mine  Accidents,  Discussion  on  Prevention  of 51 

Mineral  Land  Laws,  Report  of  Committee  on. . . 119 

Mineral  Statistics,  Report  of  Advisory  Committee  on.  .• US 

Nominating  Committee,   Report  of 110 

Resolutions,  Discussion  Incident  to  Action  on 88 

Resolutions,  Membership  of  Committee  on 51 

Revision"  of  By-Laws,  Report  of  Committee  on 108 

Smoker  Tendered  by  Chicago  Business  Men L'.} 

Workmen's  Compensation,  Report  of  Committee  on 113 

Workmen's  Compensation,  Discussion  of  Report  on 38 

SPEAKERS. 

Abbott,  W.  L Economics  of  Coal  Industry 224 

r.nlihvin,  Geo.  E Response  to  Address  of  Welcome 19 

The  Alaskan  Question 299 

Bartlett,  C.  O Workmen's  Liability  Insurance 191 

Bent,  E.  T Affiliation  of  Coal  Operators 105 

Bogle,  W.  S Bituminous  Coal  Industry 254 

Sotting",   D.  A Prevention  of  Mine  Accidents 58 

Buckley,  Dr.  E.  R Permanent  Headquarters 102 

Brooks,  Dr.  A.  H Future  of  Alaska  Coal 291 

Brownlee,  A.  G The  Malm  Process • ' 168 

Callbreath,  J.  F.,  Jr Metallurgical  Processes 83 

Permanent  Headquarters 104 

Increase  of  Directorate Ill 

Calverley,  Walter! Bituminous   Coal  Industry 61 

Chaney,  Hon.  J.  C Response  to  Address  of  Welcome 28 

Chapman,  H.  L Response  to  Address  of  Welcome 27 

Conner,  Eli  T Response  to  Address  of  Welcome '.  31 

Daniels,  W.  P Investigation   of  Malm  Process 80 

Forestry   Committee 82 

Mine  Frauds 85 

Davis,  H.  D Prevention  of  Mine  Accidents 56 

De  Laverg-ne,  E.  M Report  of  Resolutions  Committee 88 

Permanent  Headquarters 103 

De  Lestry,  E.  L Response  to  Address  of  Welcome 33 

Workmen's    Compensation 44 

Nominating  Committee 101 

Affiliation  of  Mining  Associations 109 

Dern,  John Introducing  President  Taft 99 

Permanent  Headquarters 103 

President's  Annual  Address 121 

De  Pulligny,  Jean Response  to  Address  of  Welcome 14 

Dinwiddie,  J.  M Mine  Frauds 83 

Douglas,  Dr.  Jas Disposal  of  Public  Lands 214 

Elliot,  James .Coal  Mining  Industry 224 

Finney,  J.  E . Mine  Run  Syste'm 233 

Fishback,   Martin Conservation  vs.  Encouragement 334 

Fisher,  Hon.  Walter  L.  .  .  Alaskan  Problems 363 

Foster,  Dr.  Martin  D Congress  and  Mining  Industry 390 

Gibson,  Thos.  W Response  to  Address  of  Welcome .' .  16 


232495 


<    SN'D-EX 


Page 

Gillie,  John Response  to  Address  of  Welcome 30 

Goodsell,  B.  W Deep  Waterways 92 

Gould,  C.  N1 Response  to  Address  of  Welcome 31 

Granberg,  H.  O Metallurgical  Investigation 86 

Griffith,  William Pennsylvania  Leases.. • 71 

High  Grade  Coals  of  Alaska 329 

Gulley,  Hon.  Ransom Response  to  Address  of  Welcome 19 

Hammond,  John  Hays Mining  Investments 163 

Harnwell,  F.  W Response  to  Address  of  Welcome 16 

Harriman,  H.  R New  Federal  Alaskan  Policy 309 

Haworth,  Dr.  Erasmus.  . . Response  to  Address  of  Welcome 21 

Committee  on  By-Laws 107 

Report  of  Nominating  Committee 110 

Holmes,  Dr.  J.  A The  Mining  Industry 69 

Jacobs,  Hon.  J.  H Response  to  Address  of  Welcome 23 

Jones,  John  H Workmen's  Compensation 180 

Joseph,  H.  S Committee  on  Freight  Rates 98 

Joslin,  Falcon Alaskan  Coal  Situation 351 

Kirby,  E.  B Revision  of  Mineral  Land  Laws 86 

Knight,  Jesse Power  Sites 78 

Conservation  and  the  People 158 

Kuhn,  D.  W Sherman  Law  and  Coal  Industry 257 

Leehey,  Maurice  D Coal  and  Transportation  in  Alaska 337 

McGann,  Lawrence  E .  .  .  .  Address  of  Welcome 26 

Malm,  John  L Committee  of  Metallurgists 80 

Martin,  E.  L Response  to  Address  of  Welcome 29 

Vote  of  Thanks 88 

Mayer,  John Workmen's  Compensation '. 38 

Maynard,  T.  Poole Cement  Resources  of  South 208 

Moderwell,  C.  M Opening  of  Convention 8 

Moore,  Philip  N Response  to  Address  of  Welcome 30 

Moorshead,  A.  J Bituminous  Coal  Industry 246 

Nugent,  Horace Response  to  Address  of  Welcome 13 

Payne,  Dr.  H.  M Affiliation  of  Coal  Operators 106 

Pratt,  Dr.  J.  H Mining  Schools 91 

Purdue,  Dr.  A.  H Mine-Run  Law  in  Arkansas 227 

Ropiequet,  R.  W Bituminous  Coal  Industry 64 

Ross,  David Workmen's  Compensation 46 

Ross,  G.  McM Alaskan  Situation 97 

Scholz,  Carl Economics  o/  Coal  Industry 241 

Searcy,  W.  N Response  to  Address  of  Welcome 19 

Ore  Treatment  Problems 196 

Smith,  Dr.  Geo.  Otis Coal  Land  Legislation 285 

Spry,  Hon.  Wm The  Public  Lands  Question 138 

Stevenson,  Andrew Prevention  of  Mine  Accidents 51 

Stevens,  Horace  J The  Copper  Industry 146 

Stewart,  Duncan  M Transportation  in  Alaska 320 

Stoek,  Dr.  H.  H Address  of  Welcome 8 

Taft,  Hon.  Wm.  H Government  and  Mining  Industry 394 

Talmage,  Dr.  J.  E Response  to  Address  of  Welcome 32 

Permanent  Headquarters 103 

Taylor,  H.  N Bituminous  Coal  Industry 62 

Taylor,  James Prevention  of  Mine  Accidents 51 

Taylor,  S.  A Workmen's  Compensation •. 43 

Electrical  Standardization 49 

Bureau  of  Mines 110 

Traer,  Glenn  W Coal  Operators'  Meeting 76 

Verner,  John Prevention  of  Mine  Accidents 55 

Vinson,  Z.  T Workmen's  Compensation 39 

Wetherly,  E.  C Committee  on  Freight  Rates '. .  98 

Williams,  Walter Anti-Trust  Laws  and  Coal  Industry 2?0 

Woodson,  C.  C Workmen's  Compensation 45 


INDEX 


PAPERS  AND  ADDRESSES. 

Page 

Annual^Address  of  President John  Bern,  Salt  Lake  City  121 

The  Public  Land  Question Hon.  William  Spry,  Governor  of  Utah  138 

Past,  Present,  and  Future  of  Copper ...  Horace  J.  Stevens,  Houghton,  Mich.  146 

Conservation  and  the  People Jesse  Knight,  Provo,  Utah  159 

Mining  as  an  Investment John  Hays  Hammond,  New  York  City  163 

Importance  of  the  Malm  Process  in  the  Metallurgy  of  Complex  Ores 

A.  G.  Brownlee,  Idaho  Springs,  Colo.  168 

Workmen's  Compensation John  H.  Jones,  Pittsburgh  180 

Workmen's  Liability  Insurance C.  O.  Bartlett,  Cleveland  191 

The  Federal  Investigation  of  Ore  Treatment  Problems 

W.  N.  Searcy,  Silverton,  Colo.  196 

Portland  Cement  and  Cement  Resources  of  the  Southern  States 

T.  Poole  Maynard,  Atlanta,  Ga.  208 

Some  Reflections  on  the  Disposal  of  Public  Coal  Lands 

Dr.  James  Douglas,  New  York  City  214 

Condition  of  the  Coal  Mining  Industry  of  Oklahoma 

James  Elliot,  McAlester,  Okla.  221 

The  Economics  of  the  Coal  Industry W.  L.  Abbott,  Chicago  224 

The  Operation  of  the  Mine-Run  Law  in  Arkansas 

Dr.  A.  H.  Purdue,  Fayetteville,  Ark.  227 

The  "Mine-Run  System"  of  Mining  Coal.  . .  .J.  E.  Finney,  Huntingdon,  Ark.  233 

The  Economics  of  the  Coal  Industry Carl  Scholz,  Chicago  241 

The  Condition  of  the  Bituminous  Coal  Industry 

A.  J.  Moorshead,  St.  Louis,  Mo.  246 

The  Condition  of  the  Bituminous  Coal  Mining  Industry 

Walter  S.  Bogle,  Chicago  254 

Sherman  Anti-Trust  Law  with  Special  Reference  to  the  Coal  Mining  Indus- 
try  D.   W.  Kuhn,  Pittsburgh  257 

Anti-Trust  Laws  in  Their  Relation  to  the  Mining  Industry 

Walter  Williams,  Benton,  III.  280 

What  the  West  Needs  in  Coal  Land  Legislation 

Dr.  George  Otis  Smith,  Washington,  D.  C.  285 

The  Future  of  Alaska  Coal Dr.  Alfred  H.  Brooks,  Washington,  D.  C.  291 

The  Alaskan  Question    George  E.  Baldwin,  Valdes,  Alaska  299 

Wanted,  an  Informal  Public  Sentiment  to  Support  a  New  Federal  Policy 

Toward  Alaska Henry  R.  Harriman,  Seattle,  Wash.  309 

Transportation  in  Alaska Duncan  M.  Stewart,  Seward,  Alaska  320 

The  High  Grade  Coals  of  Alaska William  Griffith,  Scranton,  Pa.  329 

Conservation  vs.  Encouragement Martin  Fishback,  El  Paso,  Texas  334 

Coal  and  Transportation  in  Alaska Maurice  D.  Leehey,  Seattle,  Wash.  337 

The  Alaskan  Coal  Situation Falcon  Joslin,  Fairbanks,  Alaska  351 

Alaskan  Problems Hon.  Walter  L. 'Fisher,  Secretary  of  the  Interior  363 

The  Relation  of  Congress  to  the  Mining  Industry 

Dr.  Martin  D.  Foster,  Washington,  D.  C.  390 

The  Federal  Government  and  the  Mining  Industry 

Hon.  William  Howard  Taft,  President  of  the  United  States  394 


RESOLUTIONS 

SUBJECT  INTRODUCED  BY      PAGE       DISPOSITION        PAGE 

'l    'Metallurgical    Teatlng    Stations.  .  Harry   S.    Joseph 35  Substitute    Adopted..   S9 

2     Bituminous     Coal     Industry Kanawha     Coal     Opera- 

'     tors'     Ass'n 36  Substitute    Adopted..  92 

..      v]!iska    coal     Lands Valdrz  Section  A.  M.  C.  37  Substitute    Adopted..   96 

l'     Miners'     Wage    S.-ale J«s.     Flotchor 37  Tabled     -    •• 

5  Deep     Wat.Txvays B.    W.    Goodsell 37  Substitute    Adopted.  .   9C 

6  Workmen's     Compensation     and 

Anti-Trust    Laws ','.., 2.  T.  Vinson 38  Substitute    Adopted. .« 

6a  Workmen's     C..mp«'iisatl<ni E.    T.    Bent 38  Substitute    Adopted.  .   92 

7  Metallurgical     Investigations H.   O.   Granberg 56  Substitute    Adopted..   89 

8  Amendment  of   Anti-Trust   Laws.  Glenn    W.    Traer 65  Substitute    Adopted..   92 

9  "Shooting  Off  the  Solid" J.  E.  Finney 65  Substitute    Adopted. .  92 

in     Maintenance   of   Mining  Schools.  .  II.    N.   Taylor G6  Adopted   90 

11  Mefnllurgiciil     Investigations W.  N.  Scarcy 67  Substitute    Adopted.  .   SO 

12  Metallurgical     Appropriation W.    P.   Daniels 72  Substitute    Adopted.  .   89 

1 .",     Alaska    Coal   Lands Falcon    Joslin 73  Substitute    Adopted .  .   96 

1 4  Mine    Frauds W.   P.   Daniels 73  Substitute    Adopted .  .  94 

15  Revision   of  By-Laws W.   P.    Daniels 75  Tabled     

.  .     Bureau    of    Mines Pa.   Delegation 97  Adopted    97 

..     Publicity     Committee *  94  Adopted    94 

..      Parks'    on    Mineral    Lands *  00  Adopted    9ft 

..      Obituary    *  97  Adopted    97 

.  .      Thanks'    95  Adopted    95 

*Prc>rared    by    ('<  mmittee   on   Resolutions. 


OFFICIAL  ROSTER,  1911 

OFFICERS. 
JOHN  DERN,  President.  SAMUEL  A.  TAYLOR,  1st  V.  Pres. 

D.  W.  BRUNTON,  2nd  Vice  Pres.  E.  A.  MONTGOMERY,  3rd  V.  Pres. 

J.  F.  CALLBREATH,  JR.,  Secretary. 

DIRECTORS. 
JOHN  DERN,  Salt  Lake  City,  Utah.          A.  G.  BROWNLEE,  Denver,  Colo. 

E.  R.  BUCKLEY, 'Chicago,  111.  SAMUEL  A.  TAYLOR,  Pittsburgh  Pa. 

D.  W.  BRUNTON,  Denver,  Colo.  L.  W.  POWELL,  Warren,  Ariz. 

E.  A.  MONTGOMERY,  Los  Angeles.  GEO.  WINGFIELD,  Reno,  Nev. 
Dr.  JAS.  DOUGLAS,  New  York  City.  tGEO.  W.  E.  DORSEY,  Salt  Lake. 
CHAS.  A.  BARLOW,  Bakersfield.  B.  F.  BUSH,  St.  Louis;  Mo. 

ADVISORY    BOARD. 

RICHARD  E.  SLOAN,  Phoenix,  Ariz.       D.  W.  BRUNTON,  Denver,  Colo. 
THOS.  C.  BURKE,  Sumpter,  Ore.  \\r.  T.  PERKINS,  Seattle,  Wash. 

KDWARD   HORSKY,   Helena,   Mont. 

EXECUTIVE    COMMITTEE. 

D.  W.  BRUNTON,  Denver,  Colo.  JOHN  DERN,  Salt  Lake  City,  Utah. 

A.  G.  BROWNLEE,  Denver. 


tDeceased. 


OFFICERS  AND  COMMITTEES,  1911  7 

STATE   VICE   PRESIDENTS. 

Alaska   .  CHAS.   ESTMERE Candle 

Arkansas    A.  W.  ESTES YelBville 

Arizona   WILL.  L.  CLARK Jerome 

California    .  .  .SEELEY  W.  MUDD Los  Angeles 

Canada HON.  H.  H.  LANG ' ,  Cobalt,  Ont. 

Colorado    .  E.  A.  COLBURN Denver 

Delaware    .  HUGH  C.  BROWNE Wilmington 

Idaho    J.  H.  RICHARDS Boise 

Illinois    .  . . .  J.   A.   EDE «. La  Salle 

Kansas    ERASMUS   HAWORTH Lawrence 

Minnesota    .  .  .E.  L.  DeLESTRY St.  Paul 

Missouri    .  .  .H.  H.  GREGG Joplin 

Nevada    H.  H.  BROWN Tonopah 

New  Mexico C.   T.   BROWN Socorro 

New  York    .  .  .DR.   JAMES  DOUGLAS New  YorK 

Oregon    J .  FRANK  WATSON Portland 

Ohio    C.  O.  BARTLETT Cleveland 

Oklahoma   C.  N.  GOULD Norman 

Pennsylvania   J.  V.   THOMPSON Uniontown 

Sonora  (Mexico) DAVID    COLE Cananea 

South   Dakota    T.  J.  GRIER Lead 

Texas     WM.  B.   PHILLIPS Austin 

Utah    DUNCAN   MacVICHlE Salt  Lake  City 

Virginia    E.  A.   SCHUBERT Roanoke 

Washington     MATT    BAUMGARTNER Spokane 

West  Virginia   I.    C.   WHITE Morgantown 

Wisconsin    GEORGE  L.  JARRETT. . . Platteville 

Wyoming    EDWIN  HALL Cheyenne 

COMMITTEES. 

GENERAL    REVISION    OF    MINERAL    LAND    LAWS. 

E.  B.  KIRBY,  Chairman. 

Alaska— J.   L.  STEELE.  Nevada— D.  C.  McDONALD. 

Arizona— WILL  L.  CLARK.  New  Mexico— J.  J.  MURRAY. 

California— J.  ROSS  CLARK.  Oregon— FREDERICK  POWELL. 

Idaho— E.  M.  HEIGHO.  Oklahoma— DR.  C.  N.  GOULD. 

Montana— CORNELIUS  KELLY.  South  Dakota— I.  A.  WEBB. 

Missouri— E.  B.  KIRBY.  Utah— F.  J.  HAGENBARTH. 

Wyoming— EDWIN  HALL. 

SMELTER    RATES   AND   ORE    TREATMENT. 

E.  A.  COLBURN,  Denver,  Colo.,  Chairman. 

HARRY  L.  DAY,  Wallace,  Idaho.  STUART  CROASDALE,  Denver. 

S.  E.  BRETHERTON,  San  Francisco,  Cal. 

FEDERAL    LEGISLATION. 

JOHN  HAYS  HAMMOND,   New  York,   Chairman. 

GEO.  W.  E.  DORSEY,  Salt  Lake,  D.  W.  BRUNTON.  Denver,  Colo. 

J.  H.  RICHARDS,  Boise,  Idaho.  GEO.  WINGFIELD,  Reno,  Nev. 

ALASKAN    MINING    LAWS. 

HENRY  R.   HARRIMAN,    Seattle,   Wash.,   Chairman. 
J.  L.  STEELE.  Seattle,  Wash.  M.  D.  LEEHEY,  Seattle,  Wash. 

FREIGHT    RATES. 

TRACY  C.  BECKER,  Los  Angeles,  Cal.,  Chairman. 
H.  S.  JOSEPH,  Salt  Lake,  Utah.  DUNCAN  MacVICHlE,  Salt  Lake,  Utah. 

FINANCE. 

E.  A.  MONTGOMERY,   Los  Angeles,   Cal.,   Chairman. 

DAVID  KEITH,  Salt  Lake,  Utah.  W.  F.  R.  MILLS,  Denver,  Colo. 

<  I  K< ).  WINGFIELD,  Reno,  Nev.  B.  F.  BUSH,  St.  Louis,  Mo. 

UNIFORM    MINING    LAWS. 

AS'.  R.  INGALLS,  New  York,  N.  Y.,  Chairman. 

I»K.  .TAS.  DOUGLAS,  New  York.  J.  R.  FINLAY,  Goldfield,  Nev. 

.1.   I'.  ('HANNING,  New  York.  J.  H.  HAMMOND,  New  York. 

WORKMEN'S   COMPENSATION. 
JOHN  H.  JONES,  Pittsliurg,   Pa.,  Chairman. 

DAVID  ROSS,  Springfield,  IBs.  W.  R.  WOODFORD,  Pittsburg,  Pa. 

J.  W.  DAWSON,  Charleston,  W.  Va.        THOS.  L.  LEWIS,  Indianapolis,  Ind. 

STANDARDIZATION    OF    ELECTRICAL    EQUIPMENT. 
In  Coal    Mines — 

SAMUEL  A.   TAYLOR,   Pittsburg,   Pa.,   Chairman. 

J.  R.  BENT,  Oglesby,  Ills.  H.  M.  WARREN,  Scranton,  Pa. 

GEO.  R.  WOOD,  Pittsburg,  Pa.  G.  A.  SCHREIER,  Divernon,  Ills. 

G.  T.  WATSON,  Fairmont,  W.  Va.  W.  A.  THOMAS,  Pittsburg,  Pa. 

In  Metal  Mines— 

GEN.  IRVING  HALE,  Denver,  Colo.,  Chairman. 
H.  S.  SANDS,  Denver,  Colo.  CHAS.  A.  CHASE,  Denver,  Colo. 

MINERAL    STATISTICS. 

GEO.  W.  RITER,  Salt  Lake  City.  Utah,  Chairman. 
A.  W.  WARWICK,  Denver,  Colo.  B.  N.  BLAIR,  Joplin,  Mo. 


OFFICIAL  ROSTER,  1912 


OFFICERS. 

SAMUEL   A.   TAYLOR,  D.  W.  BRUNTON, 

President.  1st    Vice-President. 

E.  A.  MONTGOMERY,  CARL  SCHOLZ, 

2d  Vice-President.  3d  Vice-President. 

J.  F.  CALLBREATH,  JR.,    Secretary. 

DIRECTORS. 

JOHN  BERN,  E.  R.  BUCKLEY, 

Salt  Lake  City,  Utah.  Chicago,  111. 

SAMUEL  A.  TAYLOR,          CHARLES  A.  BARLOW, 

Pittsburgh,   Pa.  Bakersfield,   Cal. 

D.  W.   BRUNTON,  A.  G.  BROWNLEE, 

Denver,  Colo.  Denver,  Colo. 

E.  A.  MONTGOMERY,  JAMES  DOUGLAS, 

Los  Angeles,  Cal.  New  York  City. 

GEORGE  WINGFIELD,          CARL  SCHOLZ, 

Reno,  Nev.  Chicago,  111. 

L.  W.  POWELL,  HARRY  N.  TAYLOR, 

Warren,  Ariz.  Chicago,  111. 

JOHN  MAYER,  Kansas  City,  Mo. 

ADVISORY  BOARD. 

RICHARD  E.  SLOAN,  D.  W.  BRUNTON, 

Phoenix,  Ariz.  Denver,  Colo. 

THOS.  C.  BURKE,  W.  T.  PERKINS, 

Baker  City,  Ore.  Seattle,  Wash. 

EDWARD  HORSKY,  Helena,  Mont. 

EXECUTIVE   COMMITTEE. 

D.  W.  BRUNTON,  JOHN  DERN, 

Denver,  Col.  Salt  Lake  City,  Utah. 

A.  G.  BROWNLEE,  Denver,  Colo. 


*State   Vice    Presidents   and   Committees    for   1912   will   be   announced    in    the 
January  Issue  of  the  Monthly  Bulletin. 


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D.    W.    BRUNTON  ||  JOHN  DKRN  •••  DR.  K.  K.  BUCKLEY  E.A.MONTGOMERY 

1st   Vice-Pres,,  Denver.     •   Duecior,  Salt  Lak»  City.  •*•     Director,  Chicago.    _    2d  Vice-Pres.,     Los  Angeles. 


A.  G.  BROWNLEE 


JOHN  MAYER 
Director,  Kansas  City 


GEORGE  WINGFIELD 
I  Director.  Reno,    Nev 


SAMUEL  A.  TAYLOR 

President  of  American  Mining  Congress 

Pittsburgh,  Pa. 


LOUIS  W.'POWEI. 


wm 


•Ct 


DR.  JAMES  DOUGLAS 
Director,  New  York. 


CARL  SCUOI.Z 

Vice  Pies.,  Chicagc 


OFFICERS  AND  DIRECTORS  1912 


REPORT  OF  THE  PROCEEDINGS 

OF  THE 

Fourteenth  Annual  Session  of  the  American 
Mining  Congress. 


Chicago,  Illinois,  October  24-28,  1911. 


TUESDAY,  OCTOBER  24,  1911. 

Opening    Session. 

2:00  O'clock  P.  M. 

The  Fourteenth  Annual  Session  of  the  American  Mining  Congress, 
held  at  Chicago,  Illinois,  October  24-28,  1911,  was  called  to  order  by 
Mr.  C.  M.  Moderwell,  Chairman  of  the  Local  Executive  Committee, 
Tuesday  afternoon  at  2  o'clock. 

Invocation  by  the  Very  Reverend  Dean  Walter  T.  Summer. 

MR.  MODERWELL:  Gentlemen  of  the  American  Mining  Con- 
gress: I  make  my  appearance  before  you  today  because  I  happen  to 
be  connected  with  the  local  arrangements  committee.  Our  work  is 
practically  done,  except  that  we  want  to  see  to  your  comfort  while 
you  are  here,  and  see  that  you  have  your  share  of  pleasure  and  do  your 
share  of  the  work. 

We  all  greatly  regret  the  serious  accident  which  prevents  Gov- 
ernor Deneen  from  being  with  us  but  we  are  glad  that  he  has  sent  as 
his  personal  representative,  Dr.  H.  H.  Stock,  Professor  of  Mining  En- 
gineering, University  of  Illinois,  who  will  now  welcome  the  delegates 
on  behalf  of  the  Governor  and  the  state  of  Illinois. 

DR.  STORK:  The  position  of  a  substitute  speaker  is  always  an 
unfortunate  one,  for  those  who  must  hear  him  as  well  as  for  the  substi- 
tute. In  the  present  instance  the  substitution  is  particularly  unfortunate 
and  regrettable  as  the  Governor  of  Illinois,  who  was  scheduled  to  wel- 
come the  American  Mining  Congress  to  the  state,  is  prevented  from  being 
present  by  illness  and  injury. 

As  most  of  those  present  know,  about  two  months  ago  Governor 
Deneen  broke  his  leg  while  attempting  to  save  others  from  being 
injured  and  has  since  then  been  confined  to  the  house.  He  was,  how- 
ever, recovering  nicely  and  confidently  expected  to  address  the  Con- 
gress in  person  until  four  days  ago,  when  he  slipped  and  again 
wrenched  his  leg  so  severely  as  to  materially  increase  his  period  of 
confinement  to  the  house.  He  has  therefore,  delegated  me  to  bid  you  a 
most  cordial  welcome  to  the  state  of  Illinois  and  to  express  his  hope  that 
the  Chicago  session  of  the  American  Mining  Congress  will  be  the 
most  successful  one  in  its  history  and  one  at  which  measures  may  be 
inaugurated  that  will  work  for  the  advancement  of  the  mining  industry 
throughout  the  world. 

Governor  Deneen  expected  to  speak  upon  recent  legislation  in 
Illinois  affecting  the  conservation  of  life,  resources,  property  and  the 
rights  of  employer  and  employe.  It  is  his  desire  that  I  outline  to  the 
Congress  what  has  been  done  in  Illinois  during  the  past  three  or  four 
years  in  attempting  to  solve  some  of  the  problems  connected  with 
the  coal  industry. 


10  •'-..-.    ^ 

Speaking  in  very  general  terms  the  geological  conditions  in  Illinois 
are  similar  to  those  in  the  other  middle  west  states  and  not  ma- 
terially different  from  those  in  western  Pennsylvania,  West  Virginia 
and  Alabama  in  so  far  as  they  affect  the  technical  problems  connected 
with  coal  mining.  This  similarity  of  natural  condition  means  similar- 
ity in  the  mining  problems  and  suggests  at  once  the  great  desirability 
of  similarity  and  uniformity  as  nearly  as  local  conditions  will  permit, 
in  the  legal  regulations  surrounding  mining,  so  that  no  one  state  may 
be  placed  at  a  disadvantage  on  account  of  the  legal  restrictions  placed 
upon  mining  in  that  state. 

It  is  possible  that  some  of  the  delegates  to  the  Congress  do 
not  realize  that  according  to  the  reports  of  the  geological  survey, 
Illinois  ranks  third  among  the  mineral  producing  states.  For  many 
years  she  held  second  place  as  a  producer  of  coal  and  is  still  a  -strong 
competitor  with  West  Virginia  for  second  place,  moreover  much  of  the 
coal  produced  in  Illinois  is  utilized  within  the  state  and  an  economic 
factor  of  considerable  importance.  Again  Illinois  is  second  in  the 
list  of  producers  of  zinc  spelter  and  second  in  the  production  of 
petroleum,  and  what  may  surprise  many,  it  ranks  third  as  a  producer 
of  pig  iron.  The  iron  and  steel  industry  that  is  rapidly  developing 
around  the  southern  end  of  Lake  Michigan  bids  fair  to  make  Chicago 
and  its  suburbs  a  second  Pittsburgh.  These  statistical  facts  are  men- 
tioned, not  in  a  spirit  of  state-praise  nor  to  draw  invidious  comparisons 
with  other  mining  states,  but  to  emphasize  the  fact  that  mining  prob- 
lems in  Illinois  are  being  studied  not  only  from  a  theoretical  stand- 
point but  the  investigations  are  being  carried  on  in  a  region  where 
mining  is  a  very  important  industry  and  by  men  who  are  interested 
in  the  subject  because  of  the  lives  at  stake  and  the  capital  invested. 

It  has  been  conclusively  demonstrated  that  it  is  practicable,  in 
Illinois  at  least,  to  have  a  commission  composed  of  parties  vitally 
interested  in  the  industry  suggest  to  the  legislature  laws  that  are 
acceptable  to  the  miner,  the  operator,  and  the  public.  These  laws  may 
not  be  entirely  satisfactory  to  either  of  the  three  parties  interested 
but  they  are  acceptable  and  they  should  not  give  rise  to  the  same  con- 
troversies as  laws  that  are  proposed  by  either  of  the  three  parties 
without  regard  to  the  wishes  of  the  others. 

Three  years  ago  the  Forty-Sixth  General  Assembly  of  Illinois  had 
before  it  some  forty  separate  mining  bills,  some  proposed  by  the 
miners,  some  by  the  operators,  but  none%  acceptable  to  both  parties; 
and  in  consequence  the  mining  committe'es  of  the  senate  and  house 
were  at  a  loss  to  know  which  bills  to  accept.  Late  in  the  session 
when  it  appeared  as  if  all  mining  legislation  would  fail  miners  and 
operators  compromised  upon  two  measures,  one  providing  for  the 
appointment  of  a  commission  to  investigate  mining  conditions  and  to 
revise  the  mining  code  of  the  state  and  another  providing  for  the 
establishment  of  a  Department  of  Mining  Engineering  at  the  State 
University.  These  two  laws  may  seem  like  a  meager  output  for  a 
legislative  session,  but  each  represents  a  basic  principle  and  need  in- 
the  mining  industry,  and  I  believe  those  who  arranged  and  agreed 
to  the  compromise  laid  a  wiser  foundation  even  than  they  imagined. 
The  first  law  recognized  the  possibility  of  uniting  apparently  diamet- 
rically opposite  elements  by  consultation  and  conference  and  the  results 
of  two  years'  work  have  shown  this  principle  to  have  been  a  sound 
one.  %  The  second  law  recognized  the  necessity  and  value  of  scientific 
training  and  investigation  in  connection  with  coal  mining,  a  fact  too 
long  overlooked  and  unrecognized  in  the  United  States. 

The  Mining  Investigation  Commission  was  composed  of  nine 
members  appointed  by  the  Governor,  three  .representing  the  operators, 
three  the  United  Mine  Workers  and  three  the  general  public,  no  one 
of  these  latter  three  could  be  identified  or  affiliated  with  the  interests 
of  either  the  mine  owners  or  the  coal  miners,  nor  dependent  upon  the 
patronage  or  good  will  of  either  one,  or  be  in  political  life.  Governor 
Deneen  appointed  as  representatives  of  the  miners  and  operators  those 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  11 

who  were  recommended  to  him  by  these  respective  organizations  and 
those  representing  the  general  public  were  nominated  jointly  by  the 
miners  and  operators  so  that  the  commission  was  absolutely  free 
from  political  bias  and  neither  the  miners  nor  the  operators  could 
claim  that  their  interests  were  not  fairly  represented  upon  the  com- 
mission as  they  had  entire  freedom  in  the  selection  of  their  own 
representatives  and  an  equal  say  in  the  choice  of  the  representative 
of  the  general  public.  The  commission  first  made  a  compilation  and 
careful  study  of  practically  all  of  the  coal  mining  laws  of  the  United 
States,  Canada  and  Great  Britain,  and  in  its  subsequent  work  constant 
reference  was  made  to  all  laws  that  had  been  passed,  in  an  effort  to 
combine  in  the  Illinois  law  the  good  features  of  all  of  these  other 
laws.  In  addition  to  the  examination  of  laws  from  other  states,  cer- 
tain investigations  were  carried  on  to  determine  technical  data  that 
were  not  available.  As  a  result  of  these  investigations  a  number  of 
separate  laws  covering  different  phases  of  the  question  were  unani- 
mously reported  to  the  legislature  and  all  of  these  were  passed  prac- 
tically as  suggested  by  the  commission  in  so  far  as  they  concerned 
the  regulation  of  the  mines,  the  only  changes  made  being  items  of 
administration  and  not  matters  affecting  the  security  of  life  and  prop- 
erty. Time  will  not  permit,  nor  is  this  the  place  to  go  into  great 
detail  concerning  these  laws,  but  a  few  of  the  leading  requirements 
that  indicate  an  advance  over  previous  legislation  may  be  of  interest. 

Immediately  after  the  disaster  at  Cherry  a  law  was  passed  re- 
quiring the  installation  of  fire  fighting  appliances,  telephones,  and  other 
signalling  devices,  providing  for  a  regular  fire  drill  and  for  the  fire- 
proofing  of  shafts.  A  Mine  Rescue  Station  Commission  was  established 
and  this  commission  now  has  three  fully  equipped  stations,  one  in  the 
northern,  one  in  the  central  and  one  in  the  southern  part  of  the  state 
.where  men  are  always  on  duty  subject  to  call  in  case  of  accident  and 
where  men  are  being  trained  in  the  use  of  oxygen  helmets  and  other 
fire  fighting  appliances  and  in  rendering  first  aid  to  the  injured. 

The  complete  revision  of  the  mine  laws  as  passed  by  the  forty- 
seventh  session  of  the  legislature  fixes  standard  sizes  of  black  pow- 
der, limits  the  number  of  shots  that  can  be  fired,  prohibits  any  inflam- 
mable structure  within  two  hundred  feet  of  the,  head  of  the  shaft, 
increases  the  frequency  of  mine  inspection,  greatly  enlarges  and  clearly 
defines  the  duties  of  mine  inspectors,  provides  refuge  places  for  the 
men  at  the  foot  of  the  shaft,  requires  men  to  be  checked  in  and  out 
of  the  mines  each  day,  and  in  general  aims  to  state  clearly  and  dis- 
tinctly the  duties  of  all  those  connected  with  the  mines. 

A  separate  law  regulates  the  drilling  of  oil  and  gas  wells  and 
provides  for  the  mapping  df  the  same.  Another  law  provides  for  the 
investigation  of  mining  conditions  in  the  state  by  the  State  Geological 
Survey  and  the  Department  of  Mining  Engineering  at  the  State  Uni- 
versity acting  in  co-operation  with  the  Federal  Bureau  of  Mines. 
Authority  was  also  given  for  the  establishment  of  miners'  and  mechan- 
ics' institutes  throughout  the  state  but  failure  to  provide  funds  to 
carry  on  this  work  will  delay  its  organization. 

These  laws  indicate  an  attitude  of  progress  and  a  desire  to  im- 
prove the  conditions  under  which  mining  should  be  carried  on  in  the 
state  in  so  far  as  those  conditions  can  be  regulated  by  legislative  action. 

The  improvements  required  by  these  laws  are  all  highly  desirable 
and  are  suggested  by  good  engineering,  but  they  mean  a  necessary 
increase  in  expenditure-  and  an  added  burden  to  an  already  heavily  bur- 
dened industry.  While  many  other  improvements  could  undoubtedly 
be  suggested  there  is  a  point  beyond  which  improvement  cannot  be 
made  by  legislative  action  without  •becoming  confiscatory  of  the  prop- 
erty. In  the  opinion  of  many,  that  point  has  been  nearly  reached  in 
some  states  in  the  economic  side  of  coal  mining  is  amply  provided 
for  elsewhere  on  the  program  but  several  paragraphs  from  the  report 
of  the  mining  investigation  commission  apply  very  aptly  at  this 


12  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

point    not  only  to  conditions  in   Illinois  but  to   many  other   states   as 
well  and  I  shall  therefore,  quote  from  that  report,  which  says, 

"The  number  of  shipping  mines  in  Illinois  is  greatly  in  excess  of 
the  number  required  to  supply  the  maximum  demand  for  Illinois  coal. 
This  has  resulted  in  the  actual  annual  average  running  time  of  all 
mines  operating  in  Illinois  for  several  years  past  being  materially  less 
than  two  hundred  days  per  year.  With  a  more  reasonable  adjustment 
of  mining  capacity  to  the  greatest  possible  maximum  demand  (which 
is  entirely  feasible  in  so  far  as  the  commercial  or  physical  considera- 
tions are  concerned)  it  should  be  possible  for  the  mines  to  be  operated 
an  average  of  at  least  two  hundred  and  fifty  days  per  year.  The  result 
of  this  condition  is  that  all  of  the  mine  employes  in  Illinois  (now  about 
seventy  thousand)  are  idle  on  an  average  at  least  sixty  days  per  year 
more  than  need  be  if  there  were  a  reasonable  adjustment  of  mining 
capacity  to  the  fullest  trade  requirements. 

"Stated  in  another  way,  the  entire  force  of  mine  employes  is  idle 
one-fourth  of  the  time  they  should  be  able  to  work  after  making  all 
allowance  for  unavoidable  idle  time.  This  has  the  same  effect  as 
though  one-fourth  of  them  were  idle  all  the  time.  In  other  words, 
fifteen  thousand  men,  in  effect,  are  idle  throughout  the  entire  year,  but 
held  in  the  industry  by  the  attraction  of  the  excessive  number  of  mines 
annually  in  operation.  This  is  an  enormous  economic  waste.  If  pro- 
ductive capacity  were  reasonably  adjusted  to  the  fullest  requirements, 
it  would  still  be  possiblbe  to  spare  fifteen  thousand  men  from  the 
industry  to  engage  in  other  occupations  where  their  labor  might  be 
needed.  This  is  a  severe  loss  to  mine  employes.  Even  when  piecework 
or  day  wages  are  high,  annual  wages  are  low. 

"It  is  also  a  fact  that  in  mines  idle  a  great  part  of  tire  time  a  greater 
proportion  of  the  outlay  for  labor  is  wasted  in  non-productive  work 
during  idleness  instead  of  being  applied  to  productive  work  in  getting 
out  coal.  It  is  a  further  fact  also,  by  reason  of  the  frequency  of 
periods  of  long  idleness,  that  coal  which  might  be  mined  under 
steadier  work  is  lost  by  reason  of  caving  roof  and  other  unavoidable 
conditions  arising  out  of  idleness." 

The  advisability  of  having  more  uniform  mining  legislation  in 
states  competing  in  the  same  market  was  never  more  urgent  than^  at 
the  present  time,  especially  in  order  that  the  burdens  of  production 
may  be  equally  borne.  Governor  Deneen  recognizes  this  condition  and 
in  the  personal  invitation  which  he  extended  to  the  executives  of  the 
coal  producing  states  than  Illinois  will  enact  legislation  looking  to 
he  says,  "It  is  almost  certain  that  within  the  next  few  years  other 
coal  producing  states  than  Illmois  will  enact  legislation  looking  to 
the  better  operation  of  the  industry.  It  is  very  important  that  these 
enactments,  so  far  as  practicable,  tend  toward  uniformity.  To  produce 
results  in  that  direction  co-operative  effort  is  necessary.  A  rare  op- 
portunity now  offers,  it  seems  to  me,  for  a  conference  among  ourselves 
and  with  these  gentlemen  who  are  deeply  interested  in  this  subject 
and  have  given  it  much  consideration,  and  who  can  be  most  helpful 
in  securing  the  adoption  of  systematic  co-operation,  for  the  purpose 
of  arriving  at  some  sound  conclusions  that  will  assist  us  in  the  formu- 
lation of  a  general  plan  for  future  legislation  in  our  respective  states." 

While  each  state  must  of  course,  suit  its  laws  to  its  local  condi- 
tions, there  are  certainly  broad  general  principles  affecting  the  entire 
coal  mining  industry  that  can  be  the-  basis  of  legislation  for  each  State 
so  that  the  mines  in  each  state  may  enter  the  competitive  race  more 
nearly  on  an  equal  footing  than  they  do  at  the  present  time. 

Next  in  importance  to  more  uniformity  in  legislation  is  a  cam- 
paign of  education  of  the  general  public  m  regard  to  the  coal  industry. 
As  is  the  case  in  every  other  industry  the  pre-eminent  financial  suc- 
cesses are  the  gage  by  which  the  general  public  measures  the  industry 
and  it  knows  nothing  of  the  many  who  have  fallen  by  the  wayside  nor 
of  the  average  conditions  prevailing  in  the  industry  as  a  whole. 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  13 

An  investigation  and  publication  broadcast  of  the  amount  of  cap- 
ital invested  in  the  industry,  the  cost  of  mining  and  marketing  coal, 
in  fact  a  systematic  investigation  by  a  commission  or  committee 
should  do  much  to  remove  the  prejudice  that  many  now  have  against 
the  coal  operator  and  miner  and  should  give  a  basis  for  the  settlement 
of  disputes  between  employer  and  employe  for  which  there  is  now 
very  little  non-partisan  data. 

MR.  MODERWELL:  It  now  becomes  my  pleasure  to  introduce 
to  you  Mr.  John  Bern,  the  President  of  the  American  Mining  Congress 
and  to  turn  over  to  him  the  gavel  of  this  meeting.  (Applause.) 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Gentleman  and  Ladies  of  the  Convention: 
It  is  indeed  very  gratifying  to  me  as  your  presiding  officer  to  see  such 
a  large  representative  delegation  here  this  afternoon.  I  have  attended 
a  good  many  of  our  congresses  in  the  past,  but  it  is  usual  that  our 
first  session  is  rather  sparsely  attended,'  owing  to  the  fact  that  many 
delegates  come  a  great  distance.  I  have  received  several  telegrams 
today  from  my  own  state,  saying  that  the  delegates  are  en  route,  but 
have  not  yet  arrived,  and  will  not  until  tomorrow. 

In  behalf  of  the  Congress  I  want  to  thank  Dr.  Stock,  the  repre- 
sentative of  the  Governor,  for  his  cordial  address  of  welcome.  My 
response  shall  not  be  made  at  this  time,  as  I  shall  speak  to  the  con- 
vention somewhat  later.  As  you  have  noticed  from  our  program,  a 
great  many  members  of  the  Congress  are  listed  for  response.  We 
have  had  at  various  conventions  representatives  from  other  govern- 
ments, both  from  the  European  governments  and  from  South  America. 
We  have  with  us  today  a  representative  of  the  great  empire  of  Britain, 
whom  we  bid  welcome  to  this  convention.  I  have  the  pleasure  of 
introducing  to  you  His  Britannic  Majesty's  Consul  General,  Mr.  Horace 
Nugent,  who  will  now  address  you. 

MR.  NUGENT:  Mr.  Chairman  and  Ladies  and  Gentlemen:  Per- 
mit me  as  representing  His  Britannic  Majesty's  Government  to  express 
to  you  my  hearty  appreciation  of  the  cordial  words  spoken  by  Dr. 
Stock  to  the  delegates  attending  the  convention  from  beyond  the  bor- 
ders of  your  great  state.  It  had  been  hoped  that  the  British  ambas- 
sador at  Washington  would  be  able  to  favor  us  with  his  presence, 
and  to  address  the  meeting,  but  Mr.  Bryce,  to  his  great  personal  regret, 
fqund  that  the  exigencies  of  his  official  work  and  some  previous  engage- 
ment would  prevent  his  coming  to  Chicago  at  this  time.  Now,  gentle- 
men, you  are  all  aware  that  Great  Britain  has  been  singularly  blessed 
in  mineral  resources;  in  fact,  it  is  merely  to  state  a  truism  to  say  to 
you  that  whatever  success  has  attended  our  commercial  and  industrial 
enterprises  has  been  very  largely  due  to  this  fact.  Therefore,  under 
these  circumstances  it  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  that  we,  both  as  a 
government  and  as  a  people  take  a  profound  interest  in  all  concerning 
the  mining  industry,  and  not  only  from  an  economical  point  of  view, 
but  also  from  the  side  of  the  welfare  of  the  miners.  During  recent 
years  a  large  amount  of  legislation  has  been  enacted  in  Great  Britain, 
whereby  we  trust  and  hope  many  of  the  more  satisfactory  problems 
concerning  the  welfare  of  the  mining  community  may  be  partly  solved. 
Allusion  has  already  been  made  to  some  of  these  enactments,  and  I 
have  no  doubt  that  during  the  sessions  of  the  Congress  further  allu- 
sions will  also  be  made  to  them.  It  may  possibly  be  that  you  may 
benefit  to  some  extent  by  our  experience  in  this  respect,  although  no 
doubt  the  conditions  obtaining  in  the  United  States  are  in  many 
respects  very  different  from  those  in  the  United  Kingdom.  On  the 
other  hand  it  is  perfectly  certain  to  say  that  we  have  much  to  learn 
from  you,  and  I  therefore  look  forward  with  great  personal  satisfac- 
tion to  attending  the  sessions  of  the  Congress  and  trust  at  their  close 
to  transmit  to  my  government  a  report  of  the  proceedings,  which 
proceedings  I  n'eed  hardly  add  are,  I  am  convinced,  sure  to  be  fraught 
with  much  interest  and  benefit.  (Applause.) 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Gentlemen,  the  American  field  of  mining 
has  offered  many  opportunities  to  our  fellow  citizens  of  the  United 


14  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

States,  but  a  great  deal  of  money  is  often  required  to  develop  and 
open  up  the  treasures  of  the  earth.  Oftentimes  our  American  pros- 
pector or  mine  owner  who  has  not  the  requisite  amount  of  money  to 
open  his  mine  and  failing  to  interest  sufficient  capital  at  home,  has 
gone  across  the  pond  to  interest  the  people  of  Great  Britain  and 
France,  and  a  great  deal  of  their  money  is  being  invested  all  over  our 
western  field.  Some  of  our  very  best  mines  are  controlled  by  the 
people  of  England  and  of  France.  Their  engineers  rank  high  with 
our  splendid  force  of  engineers  in  the  United  States.  They  are  always 
keenly  looking  after  the  interests  of  the  people  of  their  own  country, 
and  when  those  governments  send  representative  men  to  our  con- 
ventions to  see  what  our  engineers  and  mining  men  have  to  say  with 
reference  to  their  particular  field,  they  are  keen  to  learn  and  to  ob- 
serve and  to  be  able  to  report  to  their  respective  governments.  We 
have  with  us  today  a  representative  of  the  French  government,  and 
it  is  my  pleasure  now  to  introduce  to  you  Monsieur  Jean  De  Pulligny, 
Director  of  the  French  Mission  of  Engineers  to  the  United  States. 

MONSIEUR  DE  PULLIGNY:  Mr.  President,  Gentlemen:  It 
is  both  a  great  honor  and  a  sincere  pleasure  to  address  such  an 
audience  as  is  now  before  me,  which  includes  most  eminent  repre- 
sentatives of  nations,  states  and  of  the  mining  industry.  It  has  been 
asked  that  I  should  speak  a  few  words  in  behalf  of  French  engineers 
and  of  the  French  secretary  of  state  for  public  works  whose  dele- 
gate I  am  this  evening,  but  it  is  with  great  diffidence  that  I  have 
accepted  the  honor  bestowed  upon  me. 

Indeed,  I  am  fully  alive  to  my  own  want  of  experience  as  an 
English  speaker,  and  I  cannot  even  claim  your  sympathy  as  a  miner, 
for  I  belong  to  that  branch  of  engineering  connected  with  public 
works  in  general  and  with  the  building  of  ports  in  particular. 

Nevertheless,  thanking  very  heartily  the  officers  of  the  Congress 
for  their  confidence,  I  shall  take  up  daringly  the  pleasant  burden  which 
they  have  so  graciously  laid  at  my  feet  and  try  to  express  in  a  few 
words  what  may  be  the  principal  ideas  of  an  old-fashioned  continental 
man  about  the  vital  problems  put  under  your  consideration. 

A  greater  safety  for  miners,  more  complete  recovery  of  the  coal 
and  better  methods  of  ore  reduction,  for  the  cost  of  all  that,  who  shall 
pay  the  bill?  What  must  the  government  do  and  what  must  it  not  do? 
Such  are,  if  I  am  not  mistaken,  the  fundamental  questions  which  the 
mining  men  of  America  are  facing  on  their  path. 

These  problems  we  have  also  found  before  us  in  the  Old  World, 
and  long  ago.  I  do  not  only  speak  of  the  French  mining  men,  but 
also  of  the  German,  and  of  our  English  cousins,  which  have  done 
large  gallery  work  like  good  moles,  and  gathered  a  fair  experience 
of  metal  and  coal  mining.  I  say  that  we  have  met  these  problems  and 
I  can  add  that  we  have  worked  out  appropriated  solutions — appro- 
priated to  our  circumstances,  which  are  vastly  different  from  yours 
certainly,  but,  all  the  same,  I  think  that  our  work  may  be  of  some 
interest  to  you. 

I  feel  certain  that  you  have  already  begun  studying  it  and  that 
you  will  keep  on  that  study. 

The  inquiries  that  private  undertakings  have,  up  till  now,  started 
separately,  you  will  now  work  out  methodically  and  with  the  powerful 
resources  supplied  by  co-operation. 

Your  Bureau  of  Mines  will  verify  and  continue  the  theories  and 
experiments  of  the  French  engineers,  from  Berthelot  to  Vieille,  in- 
ventor of  the  smokeless  gunpowder,  on  temperatures  of  ignition  and 
safety  'explosives;  your  Bureau  of  Mines  will  verify  and  continue  the 
experiment  of  my  comrade,  Engineer  Taffanel,  who  has  in  charge  the 
experimental  gallery  at  Lievin,  Pas  de  Calais,  where  he  studies  the 
spreading  of  explosions  in  coal  dust  and  the  sudden  stoppage  of  such 
spreading  by  automatic  showers  of  shale  dust. 

In  regard  to  miners'  safety,  you  will  find  ample  and  careful  regu- 
lation- in  our  laws.  It  has  always  been  designed  in  accordance  with 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  15 

the  mine  owners  and  its  working  is  supervised  by  delegates  of  the 
workmen  themselves,  so  that  safety  is  not  only  assured,  but  confidence 
is  won.  And  I  may  say  that  the  practicability  of  this  scheme  is  firmly 
demonstrated  by  long  years  of  smooth  and  peaceful  working. 

On  all  these  points  your  Bureau  of  Mines  will  gather  most  useful 
and  complete  information,  including  facts  relating  to  the  important 
subject  of  the  hook-worm  disease  from  our  "Comite  des  Houilleres," 
which  is  a  private  board  maintained  by  the  French  mine  owners  and 
from  our  public  "Board  of  Mines,"  administered  by  an  eminent  body 
of  Government  engineers  who  enforce  the  compliance  with  safety  regu- 
lations and  the  observance  of  proprietary  rights  of^the  state, 

Many  from  this  body  of  engineers  have  been' authorized  by  the 
Government  to  enter  the  service  of  mining  companies  and  practically 
most  of  these  place  such  engineers  at  the  head  of  their  undertakings. 

Such  seem  to  be,  gentlemen,  the  principal  sources  of  practical 
knowledge  open  to  you:  Experience  of  the  Old  World,  properly 
adapted  to  widely  different  conditions,  and  also  new  investigations 
conducted  by  the  Bureau  of  Mines  in  your  experiment  station  or  in 
the  mines  themselves. 

When  the  conclusions  resulting  from  long,  careful  and  unpreju- 
diced studies  shall  be  laid  before  the  government  and  the  public  at 
large,  showing  a  just  consideration  of  tfie  coal  production  as  a  private 
business  as  well  as  a  public  function,  it  is  impossible  that  your 
economic  necessities  should  be  misunderstood  any  longer. 

Especially  in  this  country  the  economic  necessities  force  their 
own  consideration  before  any  others,  and  with  this  fact  we  need  not 
be  impatient,  for  it  is  only  the  assertion  that  a  man  must  first  secure 
the  means  of  living  before  he  can  do  anything  else. 

Perhaps  you  must  have  patience  and  wait  a  little  before  you  can 
attract  due  public  attention  to  the  mining  interests. 

There  are  here  many  more  questions  clamoring  for  that  attention 
than  can  promptly  receive  it,  and  the  life  of  the  American  nation  is  so 
full  of  things  needing  to  be  done  that  it  is  impossible  they  should  all 
be  taken  up  and  disposed  of  in  the  most  desirable  order. 

Now,  gentlemen,  I  will  no  longer  trespass  upon  your  time.  There 
is,  however,  one  thing  that  I  am  still  bid  to  do.  It  is  to  apologize  for 
the  smallness.  of  the  offering  which  I  bring  you  this  afternoon,  should 
you  test  it  for  quality  or  even  for  quantity.  But  this  last  defect  you 
will  perhaps  easily  excuse,  as  I  have  heard  from  wise  people  that  a 
great  deal  of  excellent  advice  is  somewhat  worse  than  wasted  by  being 
supplied,  even  to  eminent  gentlemen,  in  too  great  quantities  or  under 
inappropriate  circumstances. 

Therefore  I  will  say  no  more,  except  to  return  my  sincerest 
thanks  to  one  and  all  of  the  present  members  for  the  honor  that  has 
been  bestowed  upon  myself. 

I  also  wish  to  congratulate  you  most  heartily  for  having  wisely 
understood  that  only  by  co-operation  can  you  or  any  set  of  men  hope 
to  exert  the  full  and  legitimate  influence  of  the  large  interests  which 
they  represent. 

And 'keeping  the  best  for  the  last,  .1  feel  happy  to  express  the 
hope  that  this  session  of  the  American  Mining  Congress  may,  as  it 
has  been  said,  open  a  new  and  prosperious  era  to  the  mining  industry 
of  the  United  States,  the  largest  of  civilized  lands,  the  biggest  of 
civilized  nations!  (Applause.) 

MR.  HORACE  J.  STEVENS,  Michigan:  The  gentleman  from 
France  has  apologized  for  the  scantiness  of  his  contribution,  and  I  think 
in  testimony  of  the  appreciation  of  this  gathering  it  might  be  said  that 
we  thank  him  most  heartily,  not  for  the  scantiness,  but  for  the  value, 
und  we  especially  appreciate  this  contribution  as  coming  from  the  con- 
stituted representative  of  our  first  and  earliest  friend  among  the 
nations  of  the  world,  the  Republic  of  France.  (Applause.) 

THE  PRESIDENT:  We  have  a  distinguished  gentleman  with  us 
representing  Bolivia,  The  investment  of-  the  capital  of  the  United 


16  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

States  has  been  more  or  less  limited  as  yet  in  that  great  southland,  but 
with  the  completion  .of  the  Panama  canal,  it  is  only  a  question  _of  a 
very  limited  time  when  American  capital  will  be  invested  extensively 
in  the  southern  republics,  and  their  large  treasure  vaults  opened  for 
the  benefit  of  the  entire  world.  I  have  the  pleasure  to  introduce  to 
you  Mr.  Frederick  W.  Harnwell,  Bolivian  Consul. 

MR.  HARNWELL:  Mr.  Chairman,  and  Gentlemen  of  the  Con- 
gress: I  was  asked  by  the  Bolivian  minister  to  be  present  at  the 
deliberations  of  this  Congress,  with  the  idea  that  Bolivia  rtlight  profit 
largely  by  the.  Wisdom  of  this  convention,  and  at  the  same  time 
i  .was  also  asked  by  ybitr  honorable  secretary  to  respond  to  an  address 

§f  Welcome.  I  told  him  at  the  time  that  being  a  native  of  the  United 
tates  I  was  quite  unfamiliar  with  mining  conditions  in  Bolivia  aild 
felt  my  inexperience  and  lack  of  knowledge,  and  that  my  feelings 
prompted  me  to. remain  silent.  Up  to  the  time  1  came  here  a  few  mo- 
ments ago  I  thought  my  reason  for  remaining  silent  had  been  satis- 
factory to  your  secretary,  but  it  seems  that  it  was  not.  I  attempted 
to  decline  because  of  my  lack  of  familiarity,  but  in  that  declination  1 
was  keeping  to  myself  what  the  Bolivian  minister  said  in  his  letter, 
that  he  felt  a  very  keen  appreciation  that  this  Congress  had  seen  fit 
to  ask  Bolivia  to  be  present  and  take  part  in  the  deliberations.  Prob- 
ably many  of  you  know  much  more  about  the  mineral  wealth  of 
Bolivia  than  I  do,  merely  a  consul  in  Chicago,  but  I  know  that  the 
wealth  of  Bolivia  is  in  her  mines,  and  that  she  is  enormously  rich  in 
mineral  deposits.  The  appreciation  of  the  minister  at  Washington 
is  very  well  placed,  because  I  hope  after  the  adjournment  of  the  Con- 
gress to  be  able  to  report  to  him  and  to  furnish  him  with  the  delib- 
erations which  may  aid  in  giving  to  Bolivia  the  experience  and  the 
knowledge  that  has  come  to  this  wise  body  of  men  along  exactly  the 
line  of  Bolivia's  greatest  resource  and  wealth,  and  believe  the  develop- 
ment of  our  mineral  deposits  will  result  not  only  in  increasing  otir 
country's  wealth,  but  I  have  no  doubt  it  will  increase  the  wealth  of 
many  that  are  connected  with  this  Congress.  In  my  opinion  the  expe- 
rience of  men  operating  mines  in  the  United  States  along  that  great 
central  backbone  of  the  United  States,  which  is  Hkewise  the  backbone 
of  the  South  American  continent,  has  been  obtained  where  the  condi- 
tions must  be  similar,  the  obstacles  to  overcome  identical,  so  that  your 
experience  is  of  great  value  and  results  can  be  obtained  by  you  through 
your  learning  and  experience  quicker -in  Bolivia  than  by  any  similar 
body  of  men.  Gentlemen,  I  simply  want  to  say  in  conclusion  that  not 
only  do  I  appreciate  the  honor  conferred  upon  me  as  representing 
Bolivia  to  express  .my  appreciation,  but  in  that  the  paramount  expres- 
sion of  appreciation  is  that  of  the  Bolivian  Government.  (Applause.) 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Gentl'emen,  when  we  western  metallurgical 
miners  speak  of  the  different  mines  either  of  gold,  silver  or  lead,  being 
mined  in  the  innumerable  camps  in  Colorado,  New  Mexico,  Arizona, 
California,  Utah,  Idaho,  Nevada,  Oregon,  Washington,  and  up  to  the 
northern  boundary  of  the  country  we  immediately  think  of  this  coun- 
try as  the  most  prolific  in  pouring  out  its  wealth  from  the  mother  earth 
We  Americans  under  our  present  apex  law  lay  claim  to  extra  lateral 
rights  as  we  have  the  property  over  there;  we  even  possibly  go  so 
far  as  to  claim  the  apex  right  in  Canada  and  go  beyond  the  line.  Of 
course,  their  law  is  according  to  vertical  planes,  and  they  will  not 
permit  us  to  follow  the  apex  into  their  ground.  When  AVC  are  unable 
to  follow  the  apex  we  will  go  over  and  acquire  it  in  another  way,  but 
while  there  is  a  boundary  line  between  the  two  nations,  both  belong 
to  the  English  speaking  race,  and  when  you  get  over  there  you  hardly 
know  when  you  have  crossed- the  line,  for  pur  interests  are  identical 
and  our  objects  mutual.  We  have  today  with  us  a  representative  of 
the  Canadian  Government,  and  I  take  pleasure  in  introducing  to  you 
Mr.  Thomas  W.  Gibson,  Deputy  Minister  of  Mines,  Toronto,  Canada. 

MR.  GIBSON:  Mr.  President,  and  Ladies  and  Gentlemen  of  the 
American  Mining  Congress:  I  feel  honored  in  being  asked  to  say  a 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  \1 

word  in  behalf  of  my  native  country,  and  I  wish  at  the  outset  to  ex- 
press on  behalf  of  the  Canadian  delegation  to  this  Congress  our  appre- 
ciation and  thanks  for  the  very  cordial  welcome  which  has  been  so 
heartily  expressed  by  you,  Sir,  and  by  Dr.  Stock.  This  Congress  hag 
met  for  the  consideration  of  weighty  and  important  problems,  some 
of  which  are  peculiarly  connected  with  the  conditions  in  the  United 
States,  and  some  of  which  affect  mining  and  the  mining  industry 
wherever  situated  or  carried  on,  and  I  trust  that  on  behalf  of  Canada, 
and  more  particularly  on  behalf  of  the  Province  of  Ontario — because 
I  come  to  you  accredited  by  the  government  of  the  Province  of  On- 
tario rather  than  by  the  government  of  the  Dominion  of  Canada — I 
shall  be  able  to  car-ry  away  from  the  deliberations  and  discussions  of 
this  Congress  much  information  which  will  be  useful  and  beneficial  to 
my  own  land.  Broadly  speaking,  the  conditions  under  which  we  in 
Canada  live  and  labor  are  the  conditions  under  which  you  live  and 
labor.  The  mineral  resources  of  Canada  are  many  and  varied.  We  have 
practically  every  metal  in  commercial  quantities  except  perhaps  tin, 
and  We  have  very  many  of  the.  non-metallic  and  useful  substances. 
We  have  coal  in  Nova  Scotia  on  the  Atlantic  coast,  and  we  have  coal 
in  British  Columbia  on  the  Pacific  coast;  we  have  it  in  Alberta  and 
Saskatchewan,  and  much  of  it  is  of  excellent  coking  quality.  We 
have  iron,  the  other  pillar  upon  which  rests  the  fabric  of  modern 
industrialism,  in  all  the  provinces  in  considerable  quantities,  much  of 
it  yet  undeveloped.  Of  the  precious  metals  we  have  gold  in  the 
Yukon,  in  British  Columbia,  in  Nova  Scotia,  and  in  Ontario.  In  On- 
tario the  latest  discoveries  of  gold  in  what  is  known  as  the  Porcupine 
district  have  given  rise  to  a  very  great  deal  of  interest.  The  gold 
there  is  found  in  veins  of  quartz,  and  some  of  the  surface  showings 
have  been  spectacular  to  a  degree.  That  district  is  not  yet  producing 
bullion,  but  doubtless  it  would  have  been  ere  now  had  it  not  been  for 
the  disastrous  forest  fires  which  swept  that  country  in  the  month  of 
July,  and  which  destroyed  the  works  at  some  of  the  most  important 
and  advanced  mines. 

In  silver  Canada  stands  third  among  the  silver  producing  com- 
munities of  the  world;  Mexico  is  first,  the  United  States  is  second,  and 
Canada  is  third.  Mexico  produces  33  per  cent  of  the  world's  output 
of  silver,  the  United  States  26  per  cent,  and  Canada  15  per  cent.  This 
production  of  silver  is  largely  due  to  the  phenomenal  richness  of  the 
silver  mines  at  Cobalt.  These  mines  were  opened  in  1904,  beginning 
with  a  production  in  that  year  of  about  2-50,000  ounces,  and  have  steadily 
increased  in  output  until  in  1910  the  production  was  about  30,000,000 
ounces.  For  the  present  year  the  production  will  be  considerably 
greater,  so  that  from  the  opening  of  those  mines  to  the  end  of  1911, 
we  will  say,  the  production  of  silver  from  that  camp  will  not  have  been 
less  than  125,000,000  ounces.  I  have  no  doubt  that  many  of  you  are 
familiar  with  the  mines  of  Cobalt,  as  they  have  drawn  the  attention 
especially  of  silver  miners  from  all  over  the  world.  Indeed,  the  camp 
is  one  of  the  mining  phenomena  of  the  20th  century. 

In  copper  we  have  large  resources  in  British  Columbia  and  in 
Ontario.  In  British  Columbia  the  copper  is  associated  largely  with 
gold;  in  Ontario  with  nickel;  and  the  nickel-copper  mines  of  Sudbury 
are  the  chief  source  of  copper  produced  by  the  province  of  Ontario. 
Copper  pyrite  occurs  in  large  deposits  in  the  province  of  Quebec. 
The  nickel  mines  of  Sudbury  are  the  most  important  in  the  world, 
and  now  produce  from  60  to  70  per  cent  of  the  entire  supply  of  nickel 
required  by  the  commercial  and  industrial  world.  The  lead  and  zinc 
resources  of  British  Columbia  are  extensive.  In  the  non  metallic  sub- 
stances Ontario  and  Quebec  have  large  deposits  of  mica  of  a  very 
high  quality.  This  amber  mica,  so-called,  is  nuted  for  its  flexibility 
and  its  resistance  to  electrical  currents,  and  is  therefore  in  great  demand 
by  the  manufacturers  of  electrical  apparatus.  Quebec  yields  the  best 
asbestos  in  the  world,  and  supplies  the  markets  of  America.  We  have 
large  deposits  of  iron  pyrites,  used  in  the  manufacture  of  sulphuric 


18  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

acid.  We  have  probably  the  largest"  deposits  of  corundum  known. 
Corundum,  as  you  are  aware,  is  used  as  an  abrasive;  it  is  the  active 
principal  in  emery.  We  have  graphite;  we  have  talc  and  feldspar  and 
gypsum  and  phosphate  of  lime;  we  have  arsenic  in  quantities  sufficient 
to  poison  the  whole  people  of  the  United  States,  Mr.  President,  if 
we  desired  to  enter  upon  a  campaign  of  that  kind,  and  a  little  left  to 
attend  to  our  own  people.  We  have  petroleum  and  natural  gas  and 
salt.  In  fact,  the  mineral  industry  of  Canada,  along  with  the  other 
primary  industries  of  agriculture  and  lumbering,  forms  the  main  stay 
of  the  social  fabric  so  far  as  its  material  and  industrial  side  is  concerned. 

We  have  before  us  many  problems  in  Canada.  The  United  States 
has  been  longer  in  business  than  we  have.  It  started  earlier,  and  it 
has  arrived  at  a  more  advanced  stage  in  its  national  history,  but  we 
believe,  Mr.  President,  that  the  20th  century  is  Canada's  century.  We 
have  within  the  borders  of  our  land  vast  areas  of  agricultural  soil 
second  to  none  in  the  world.  We  have  great  forests;  we  have  prac- 
tically inexhaustible  mineral  wealth,  and  we  have  a  people  whose  moral, 
mental  and  physical  characteristics  place  them  on  a  level  with  any 
other  nation  in  the  world. 

Having  these  raw  materials  then  out-  of  which  to  form  a  nation, 
we  look,  not  only  with  hope  but  with  confidence,  to  pur  future.  We 
purpose  to  work  out  upon  our  side  of  the  boundary  line  many  of  the 
same  problems  that  the  United  States  has  worked  upon,  and  some  of 
which  it  has  solved  on  the  southern  side  of  the  line.  We  desire  to 
emulate,  your  successes.  We  desire  to  profit  by  your  mistakes.  If  we 
can  learn  anything  from  the  experience  of. the  past  or  from  the  observa- 
tion of  the  present,  we  can  learn  it  .in  just  such  meetings  and  such 
congresses  as  this,  where  are  brought  together  the  experience  and  the 
knowledge  and  wisdom  of  men  engaged  in  a  practical  industry  such 
as  mining. 

_  Sir,  standing  here  as  I  do,  I  am  conscious  that  though  I  am  on 
foreign  land,  I  am  not  in  the  midst  of  an  unfriendly  people.  The 
people  on  both  sides  of  the  line  speak  the  same  language,  they  think 
the  same  thoughts,  they  are  engaged  in  the  same  occupations,  and  we 
in  Canada  hope  that  in  working  out  the  destinies  which  lie  before  us 
as  a  country  we  shall  do  so  in  friendly  and  harmonious  relations  with 
the  great  people  to  the  south  of  us.  We  have  had  political  questions  of 
recent  days  which  I  have  no  doubt  have  given  rise  to  a  searching  of 
heart  on  this  side  of  the  line,  as  well  as  on  our  side  of  the  line,  one 
of  them  being  the  question  of  reciprocity  in  the  exchange  of  natural 
products.  This  was  approved  by  the  Congress  of  the  United  States, 
but  was  rejected  by  the  people  of  Canada.  Now  that  rejection,  I  ven- 
ture to  say,  was  not  due  to  any  unfriendly  feeling  or  want  of  regard 
for  the  people  of  the  United  States.  Notwithstanding  the  apparent 
want  of  harmony,  so  far  as  that  question  is  concerned,  I  believe  that 
underlying  all  these  surface  conditions  there  is  a  great  body  of  amity 
and  friendliness  common  to  both  sides  of  the  line.  (Applause.)  And 
it  is  under  such  conditions  and  with  a  spirit  of  that  kind  prevailing  with 
us,  and  I  am  sure  prevailing  with  you,  that  we  desire  to  carry  on  the 
work  of  developing  the  mining,  the  agricultural,  the  lumbering  and  the 
other  industries  in  which  our  people  are  engaged.  Mr.  President 
I  thank  you  very  heartily  for  the  cordial  attention  which  this  assembly 
has  given  me,  and  on  behalf  of  the  Canadian  delegation  I  express  my 
gratitude  for  the  way  in  which  we  have  been  received.  (Applause.) 

THE  PRESIDENT:  The  population  of  Alaska  is  not  very  great, 
not  a  great  many  of  our  people  of  the  different  States  have  traveled 
in  that  far  northern  country,  the  developments  so  far  are  very  limited, 
and  yet  perhaps  there  has  been  more  said  and  Avritten  in  our  papers 
and  magazines  the  last  few  years  about  Alaska  than  of  any  other  state 
in  the  Union,  and  it  is  fortunate  in  a  way  that  Alaska  is  on  the  top  of 
the  list  with  reference  to  responses  by  the  delegates  or  representatives 
from  the  different  states  and  territories.  I  now  have  the  pleasure  to 
introduce  to  this  convention  Mr.  George  E.  Baldwin,  of  Valdez,  Alaska 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  19 

MR.  BALDWIN:  Mr.  Chairman  and  Ladies  and  Gentlemen:  At 
some  future  time  during  the  deliberations  of  the  American  Mining  Con- 
gress, I  am  scheduled  to  make  a  talk  on  Alaskan  subjects.  This  after- 
noon I  can  only  express  to  you  my  thanks  and  my  appreciation,  not 
only  for  myself,  but  for  the  rest  of  the  Alaskans  who  are  here,  of 
having  the  pleasure  of  meeting  with  you.  I  don't  care  to  take  up  any 
more  time  just  now,  but  shall  ask  your  attention  and  consideration  to 
what  we  shall  have  to  say  when  the  Alaskan  problems  are  discussed 
here  before  this  meeting,  because  we  in  Alaska  loolc  with  great  hope 
and  expectation  for  good  returns  from  the  deliberations  of  this  Con- 
gress, knowing  that  you  are  a  friendly  people  to  us  and  having  been 
so  in  the  past  I  am  satisfied  you  will  be  in  the  future. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  We  will  now  hear  from  Mr.  A.  W.  Estes, 
Little  Rock. 

PROF.  A.  H.  PURDUE,  ARKANSAS:  Mr.  Estes  is  not  present, 
but  the  Honorable  Ransom  Gulley,  of  Little  Rock,  has  been  conscripted 
to  fill  his  place. 

THE  PRESIDENT:     We  will  hear  from  Mr.  Gulley. 

MR.  GULLEY:  Ladies  and  Gentlemen:  Our  President  says 
Arkansas.  By  solemn  legislative  act  we  are  Arkansas  (saw).  (Laugh- 
ter.) My  friend,  Professor  Purdue,  of  the  University  of  Arkansas,  has 
said  that  L  was  conscripted.  I  was  a  confederate  soldier  four  years,  but 
I  was  a  volunteer.  I  have  never  been  conscripted  in  my  life. 

As  I  am  expected  to  respond  to  the  address  of  welcome,  I  want 
to  say  to  you  that  we  thank  you  from  our  very  hearts  for  the  cordiality, 
for  the  handshake,  for  the  smile  that  has  been  given  us  on  every  hand, 
because  we  feel  that  we  are  at  home  in  Chicago.  (Applause.)  The 
Queen  of  Sheba  said  after  she.  had  visited  King  Solomon  that  half  had 
not  been  told  her.  The  half  of  this  Mining  Congress  had  not  been 
told  me  before  I  came  here.  I  want  to  say,  and  my  very  heart  inspires 
the  thought,  I  want  to  say  a  word  of  friendly  greeting  to  my  neighbor 
over  in  Canada.  Notwithstanding  your,  rejection  of  the  doctrine  of 
reciprocity,  we  speak  one  language  and  I  endorse  your  sentiments 
and  I  want  to  tell  you  that  we  love  you  and  I  want  to  say  to  my  Eng- 
lish brother  today  that  I  always  did  love  my  mother.  England  was 
the  mother  of  this  country.  We  have  gotten  a  little  too  large  for  the 
old  lady  to  help  us.  Maybe  she  let  us  alone  too  long.  I  want  to  say 
to  my  brother  from  France  the  first  speech  of  my  life,  the  first  dec- 
lamation of  my  life  wasvdelivered  in  a  log  school  house  in  North  Caro- 
lina, and  it  was  a  eulqgy  upon  LaFayette.  His  name  .ever  has  been 
a  household  word  in  all  this  country.  (Applause.)  To  my  brother  down 
here  in  Bolivia,  South  America,  I  feel  that  we  are  about  half  cousins. 
I  am  from  the  southern  part  of  the  United  States.  But,  my  friends, 
I  want  to  say  .another  thing,  there  is  no  North,  there  is  no  South,  nor 
East,  nor  West  in  these  United  States  since  the  Confederate  general, 
Joe  Wheeler  led  the  boys  in  blue  and  the  boys  in  gray  up  San  Juan 
Hill  and  captured  Santiago  beneath  the  American  flag.  There  is  no 
North  and  no  South  and  no  East  and  no  West.  .  (Applause.)  I  feel 
just  as  much  at  home  here  as  I  do  in  Little  Rock.  I  am  glad  to  be 
here  and  thank  you  for  listening  so  attentively,  although  my  friend,  the 
Professor,  said  I  am  conscripted.  - 1  am  a  volunteer.  (Applause.) 

THE  PRESIDENT:  I  shall  next  call  upon  Mr.  W.  N.  Searcy, 
Silverton,  Colorado,  to  respond. 

MR.  SEARCY:  Gentlemen  of  the  American  Mining  Congress: 
I  desire  to  express  to  you  the  deepest  and  most  heartfelt  gratitude  on 
behalf  of  the  people  of  Colorado  for  the  very  gracious  reception  you 
are  giving  us.  Perhaps  I  feel  this  greeting  a  little  more  because  my 
old  home  in  my  boyhood,  days  was  south  .of  Springfield,  in  the  state 
of  Illinois.  I  feel  that  perhaps  many  of  these  delegates  who  come  from 
the  West,  whether  from  Colorado,  Arizona,  California  or  Nevada,  I 
feel  that  many  of  them  in  journeying  from  the  mountains  across  the 
plains  to  the  city  of  Chicago  must  feel  that  they  are  coming  home. 
You  can  .hardly  pass  through  a  state  in  traveling  from  the  mountains 


20  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

to  the  East  but  what  some  western  man  will  remark  that  here  his 
boyhood  days  were  passed.  That  leads  me  to  remark  that  the  relation 
between  the  West  and  the  East  is  after  all  that  of  child  toward  parent 
and  parent  toward  child.  The  sons  of  the  eastern  homes  have  gone  to 
Colorado,  to  Nevada  and  to  California,  to  build  up  those  common- 
wealths, to  seek  their  fortunes,  and  to  undertake  to  build  states  modeled 
after  your  commonwealth  of  Illinois.  As  has  been  so  forcibly  and 
eloquently  stated,  I  hope  that  this  feeling  arising  out  of  mutual  interest 
may  be  such  that  in  this  mining  convention  and  in  all  the  conventions 
this  organization  shall  hold  in  the  future,  there  may  be  no  East  and 
no  West  and  no  North  and  no  South. 

I  believe  that  the  city  of  Chicago  has  outgrown  not  only  the 
expectations  of  the  western  people  who  left  here  years  ago  and  are  now 
returning  to  visit  you.  It  has  not  only  outgrown  their  expectations, 
but  I  am  not  sure  'but  that  it  has  outgrown  even  the  conception  of  its 
founders;  destined  some  day  I  believe  to  become  the  greatest  city  on 
the  American  continent  and  the  greatest  city  in  the  world.  I  desire 
to  make  the  suggestion  that  I  believe  the  city  of  Chicago  is  too  modest. 
I  believe  it  would  not  be  immodest  on  the  part  of  this  great  city  now 
if  it  would  undertake  to  put  signs  on  its  street  corners  so  that  strangers 
undertaking  to  pass  along  the  main  thoroughfares  may  read  as  they 
run,  for  we  have  got  to  run  when  we  cross  the  streets  of  Chicago. 
(Applause.) 

On  behalf  of  the  people  of  Colorado  we  not  only  thank  you  but 
like  the  Missourians  in  their  kind  and  courteous  hospitality,  we  would 
like  to  say  to  you  that  now  you  have  entertained  us  and  are  enter- 
taining us,  and  we  want  "you-all"  to  come  sometime  and  see  us.  Col- 
orado cannot  offer  such  a  great  city  in  which  to  entertain  you,  such 
wondrous  sky  scrapers;  it  cannot  offer  to  you  such  sights  of  immense 
traffic  and  industry,  but  I-  believe  it  can  offer  to  you  the  most  heartfelt 
greeting  and  hospitality  which  will  at  least  emulate  the  gracious  recep- 
tion you  are  giving  to  us.  Colorado  is  preparing  for  you,  Mr.  Chair- 
man, preparing  for  the  people  of  Chicago,  and  the  delegates  of  this 
convention  to  visit  our  state  and  make  themselves  at  home.  I  shall 
not  undertake  to  tell  you  the  mineral  wealth  of  Colorado,  perhaps  you 
know  that  as  well  as  I,  nor  its  wonderful  agricultural  wealth,  but  I  do 
desire  to  tell  you  now  that  we  are  preparing  a  highway  such  as  has 
not  been  seen  in  our  country  before,  a  thousand  miles  in  length.  We 
are  extending  from  the  city  of  Denver  to  all  those  cities  at  the  foot 
of  the  mountains,  then  across  the  San  Luis  valley  and  over  the  great 
continental  divide  to  Durango,  then  from  Durango  up  to  the  summit 
of  the  beautiful  city  of  Silverton,  and  then  down  the  Ouray  valley, 
and  down  to  Grand  Junction,  back  again  up  the  Eagle  River,  and 
across  the  continental  divide  and  down  to  the  city  of  Denver.  In 
undertaking  to  travel  on  this  circle  you  will  pass  the  healing  springs 
of  Colorado  at  Manitou,  the  Wagon  Wheel  Gap,  Pagosa  Springs,  Glen- 
wood  Springs,  the  Waters  of  the  Ouray,  Idaho  Springs,  and  we  can 
only  hope  that  as  you  journey  over  this  highway  through  the  state 
of  Colorado  every  one  of  your  ills  may  be  healed,  and  you  may  come 
home  happy  and  content.  Beyond  these  healing  waters  you  will  be 
able  to  camp  on  the  Rio  Grande,  catch  trout,  fry  them  under  the 
spruce  trees,  and  you  will  be  able  to  gather  the  apples  at  Durango 
and  Grand  Junction  and  to  eat  peaches  at  Paonia,  melons  at  Rocky 
Ford,  and  all  the  way  around  this  circle  you  will  pass  through  scenic 
grandeur  such  as  the  painter  cannot  reproduce  nor  the  photographer 
bring  back  to  you.  One  reason  for  responding  this  way  to  the  very 
cordial  reception  which  has  been  given  to  us,  is  to  call  your  attention 
to  the  fact  that  in  visiting  our  state,  the  people  of  Chicago  will  receive 
back  some  of  this  hospitality,  and  find  means  of  escaping  from  the 
summer  heat  for  up  in  the  mountain  towns  summer  heat  is  unknown. 
At  the  very  time  our  newspapers  report  deaths  in  August  and  July, 
because  of  the  oppressive  temperature  in  the  East,  perhaps  the  frost 
will  be  glistening  on  the  blades  of  grass  along  the  streams.  Now  I 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  21 

speak  of  these  things,  not  to  boast  of  my  beloved  state,  but  as  an 
answer  to  the  hospitality  which  has  been  given  to  us,  and  which  has 
made  us  feel  at  home,  and  I  speak  of  it  in  the  sense  of  saying  to  these 
people  who  are  so  kindly  entertaining  us  to  express  our  appreciation 
of  this  wonderful  hospitality  and  to  say  that  now  that  we  have  visited 
you  we  will  try  to  respond  when  you  come  to  visit  us.  (Applause.) 

THE  PRESIDENT:  A  great  many  of  you  perhaps  may^think 
that  it  is  rather  singular  to  ask  a  representative  of  the  state  of  Kansas 
to  attend  the  Mining  Congress,  Kansas  being  considered  strictly  an 
agricultural  and  prairie  state.  But  Kansas  has  great  coal  fields,  zinc, 
lead,  and  other  minerals,  and  in  the  true  sense  of  the  word  is  quite  a 
mining  country.  We  have  a  representative  here  from  that  state,  and 
I  am  sure  we  will  be  pleased  to  hear  from  him,  Dr.  Erasmus  Haworth, 
state  geologist  of  Kansas. 

DR.  HAWORTH:  Mr.  President  and  Gentlemen.  My  heart  is  full 
of  one  phase  of  the  subject  which  I  hope  properly  belongs  to  this  con- 
gress, and  with  your  permission  I  am  going  to  talk  about  four  or  five 
minutes  on  that  subject.  From  time  immemorial,  a  hundred  years  at 
any  rate  that  I  can  remember,  and  I  don't  know  how  much  longer,  the 
mining  school  teachers  of  the  United  States  have  succeeded  in  getting 
this  Congress  to  pass  a  resolution  at  every  one  of  the  sessions  in  favor 
of  Federal  aid  to  mining  schools.  That  is  as  far  as  that  has  ever  gone, 
and  I  have  concluded  that  one  of  the  reasons  why  it  was  so  easyjx^get 
such  a  resolution  through  the  various  sessions  of  this  Congress  is 
because  so  little  attention  was  paid  to  it,  not  enough  interest  even  to 
vote  "No."  We  have  now  succeeded  in  part  in  accomplishing  one  of 
the  objects  of  the  organization  of  this  Congress  in  the  way  of  Federal 
recognition.  All  of  us  remember  in  the  early  days,  ten,  eleven  or 
twelve  years  ago,  one  of  the  strongest  efforts  put  forth  by  practically 
all  the  members,  was  along  the  line  of  having  a  department  of  mining 
organized  by  the  government  with  a  member  in  the  cabinet  of  the  Pres- 
ident of  the  United  States.  This  has  been  accomplished  in  part,  insofar 
as  we  have  organized  a  Bureau  of  Mines,  and  Federal  recognition  to 
that  extent  has  been  given.  I  believe  that  the  future  welfare  and  pros- 
perity of  that  Bureau  of  Mining,  which  I  most  earnestly  hope  they 
develop  until  ultimately  it  becomes  a  department  of  mining  (applause), 
will  be  fostered  more  by  the  establishment  of  a  direct  connection  be- 
tween the  government  of  the  United  States  and  the  various  institutions 
of  learning  which  may  be  scattered  here  and  there  throughout  the 
United  States  than  by  any  other  one  individual  agency. 

I  have  given  a  great  deal  of  thought  to  this  subject.  I  have  tried 
to  draw  a  comparison  in  history,  and  we  have  a  fairly  good  parallel, 
it  seems  to  me,  in  the  great  department  of  agriculture  with  the  almost 
innumerable  agricultural  schools  here  and  there  throughout  the  United 
States.  Now,  it  is  common  knowledge  to  every  one  that  early  in  the 
last  half  of  the  century  which  has  just  closed,  Federal  recognition  of 
those  agricultural  colleges  was  given,  and  all  of  you  today  I  presume 
will  agree  with  me  when  I  say,  it  seems  to  be  a  true  statement,  that 
the  stability  that  has  been  given  to  that  cause  through  these  various 
educational  institutions  has  been  the  most  powerful  of  any  one  factor 
in  bringing  about  the  great  recognition  of  the  agricultural  interests  of 
America  that  we  have  today. 

Only  a  few  weeks  ago  in  Kansas  City  was  held  the  annual  session 
of  our  great  conservation  congress.  The  president  was  the  editor  of 
of  an  agricultural  paper,  and  the  speakers,  almost  without  exception, 
were  men  connected  with  the  agricultural  industries  of  America.  In 
the  session  from  beginning  to  end,  those  taking  part  in  the  discussion 
were  representatives  of  these  institutions,  and  finally  we  were  told  that 
there  has  been  organized  recently  a  national  bureau  called  the  soil  fertilty 
bureau,  which  has  among  its  membership  all  of  the  great  men  of 
America,  and  we  understand  the  aim  of  this  bureau  is  to  foster  agricul- 
ture. Its  purpose  is  simply  this,  to  put  a  government  official,  paid  by 
the  government  of  the  United  States,  into  every  county  in  all  the  broad 


22  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

domains  of  the  United  States  of  America.  Now,  the  agriculturist  and 
his  associates  have  been  discussing  this  subject,  and  they  have  been 
preaching  it  in  season  and  out  of  season,  and  more  than  that,  they  have 
been  acting  upon  it.  They  have  been  working  with  the  greatest  zeal 
that  any  set  of  men  have  ever  worked  within  the  United  States,  so  far 
as  I  am  able  of  judging,  in  order  to  get  the  government  of  the  United 
States  to  do  something  to  recognize  them  and  help  them — give  a  million 
dollars  today,  five  million  dollars  tomorrow,  and  twenty  million  dollars 
next  year,  and  so  on. 

The  time  has  come,  gentlemen,  practically  right  now,  when  a  large 
proportion  of  the  members  of  the  congress  of  the  United  States  simply 
go  down  to  Washington  feeling  that  they  must  vote  for  a  larger  appro- 
priation for  the  agricultural  department  than  was  voted  the  year  before 
because  the  people  want  it. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  gentlemen  interested  in  the  mining  industry 
have  been  doing  practically  nothing  in  that  line.  We  stagnated,  so  to 
speak.  All  of  you  know  that  in  order  to  get  any  public  recognition  we 
have  got  to  be  stirring  around  and  doing  something.  I  want  in  addition 
to  make  the  statement  of  fact,  which  everybody  who  has  ever  been  to 
Kansas  knows,  that  we  are  exceedingly  grateful  for  everything  we  can 
get,  and  we  are  always  hoping  to  get  more.  I  want  to  state  that  it  is 
my  unbiased,  deliberate  and  invidual  opinion  that  there  is  no  other  one 
thing  the  American  Mining  Congress  can  do,  which  will  be  one-half  as 
powerful  a  factor  in  building  up  the  future  development  and  everything 
which  we  want  to  accomplish,  as  taking  hold  of  this  matter  and  getting 
governmental  recognition  of  some  form  of  institutions  wherein  we  may 
have  the  fundamental  principles  of  Uie  great  industries  that  we  are 
interested  in  taught  and  developed  from  year  to  year,  so  that  we  wil 
have  at  least  one  point  of  stability  in  the  enterprise  and  undertakings 
that  we  have  established. 

Now,  just  one  word  further  by  way  of  comparison.  I  don't  care 
what  an  organization  is,  it  must  have  something  to  make  it  stable 
What  is  the  history  of  this  organization?  We  have  had  this  congress 
called  year  after  year  with  nothing  about  it  to  give  it  stability,  nothing 
about  it  which  tends  to  permanency,  except  popular  interest  in  the  grea 
mining  industry.  Sorh,e  of  our  best  friends  in  the  organization  realizec 
eventually  that  something  had  to  be  done,  and  the  Mining  Congress 
corporation  was  formed  so  that  we  would  have  a  certain  element  o 
stability  and  provide  a  certain  central  point  around  which  all  these 
other  interests  would  gather.  This  matter  to  which  I  refer  is  simply 
another  step  along  that  line.  We  will  have,  if  we  get  an  appropriation 
made  by  congress  from  year  to  year,  and  thereby  governmental  recogni 
tion-v  of  the  mining  schools  of  America,  a  second  factor  of  stability 
We  will  then  have  something  which  is  perpetual,  something  which  coulc 
be  called  to  the  assistance  of  any  and  every  move  that  the  American 
Mining  Congress  might  want  to  make  in  the  future.  I  believe  that  nc 
matter  what  we  may  try  to  accomplish  in  the  future,  whether  it  be  tin 
development  of  the  Bureau  of  Mines  into  a  department  of  mines  am 
mining,  covering  every  field  of  mining  industry,  or  whether  it  be  any 
thing  else  that  works  for  the  good  of  the  great  American  people,  the 
upbuilding  of  the  mining  schools  would  give  us  a  certain  element  o 
stability  that  we  cannot  get  in  any  other  way.  Therefore,  I  hope  when 
a  resolution  is  presented  here  at  the  proper  time  to  bring  about  Federa 
recognition  of  mining  schools,  that  this  Congress  will  vote  "Yes"  on 
that  resolution,  and  that  they  will  express  their  vote  in  so  loud  a  voice 
that  the  sound  will  reach  the  ear  of  every  member  of  the  Congre'ss  in 
the  United  States. 

^  Now,  Mr.  President,  and  ladies  and  gentlemen,  down  in  Kansas  in 
a  mining  way  we  are  getting  along  very  nicely.  We  are  doing  every 
thing  that  we  can  in  order  to  develop  those  industries  of  which  we  have 
a  few.  We  mine  lead,  ore,  zinc,  coal,  salt  and  gypsum,  and  are  develop 
ing  valuable  oil  fields.  I  want  to  say  to  you  that  Kansas  is  in  favor  o 
anything  and  everything  that  is  good  which  this  Congress  may  bring 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  23 

forth,  and  you  may  look  to  us  to  help  in  every  way  that  seems  desirable. 
All  you  have  to  do  is  to  ask  us.  I  am  referring  now  to  the  gentlemen 
who  are  interested  in  the  great  mining  enterprises  of  the  states.  I  thank 
you,  Mr.  President.  (Applause.) 

THE  PRESIDENT:  At  a  number  of  "bur  former  sessions  I  have 
been  sorely  disappointed  in  not  greeting  a  -delegate  from  the  great 
mining  state  of  Michigan,  which  perhaps  has  the  greatest  iron  mines 
in  the  world,  and  which  has  boasted  for  years  with  every  right  of 
having  the  greatest  copper  mines,  and  held  that  title  until  Utah  asserted 
itself  and  developed  some  which  far  outclass  any  of  the  Lake  Superior 
district.  Today  we  have,  with  us  the  Honorable  John  H.  Jacobs,  mayor 
of  Marquette,  Michigan,  who  will  respond  in  behalf  of  that  state. 

MAYOR  JACOBS:  Mr.  President  and  Fellow  Members  of  the 
Mining  Congress:  I  can  only  tell  you  what  we  are  doing  in  my  neigh- 
borhood, and  how  we  are  getting  along,  and  what  prospects  we  have  of 
improving.  Marquette,  in  Marquette  county,  is  the  center  of  our  iron  dis- 
trict in  Michigan.  It  leads  westerly  to  Gogebic,  Menominee,  Dickinson  and 
Iron  counties;  the  ore  is  shipped  from  Marquette  and  Escanaba,  Michi- 
gan, Two  Harbors,  Minnesota,  and  Ashland,  Wisconsin.  The  ores  from 
the  border  line  of  Michigan  nearest  Wisconsin  are  largely  shipped  from 
the  port  of  Ashland.  Now  Marquette  county  is  one  of  the  originals  of 
the  old  iron  counties  of  the  United  States.  The  iron  business  was  well- 
known  in  Marquette  county  as  far  back  as  1854.  The  ore  was  then  hauled 
by  mules  and  horses  from  the  mines  to  Marquette,  a  distance  of  about  12 
miles.  From  1854  to  1860  there  were  3,115,600  tons  transported  in  that 
way.  Our  enormous  increase  of  tonnage  since  that  time  is  best  read 
in  the  figures,  for  theje  have  been  shipped,  exclusive  of  the  output  for 
1911,  a  total  of  96,296,717  tons  of  ore  from  Marquette  county  alone. 
Gogebic  county  has  shipped  something  like  56,000,000,  and  Menominee 
and  Dickinson  counties  about  30,000,000  tons  more.  The  grand  total 
already  shipped  from  the  Lake  Superior  district  up  to^  the  close  of 
navigation  in  1910  is  493,489,562  .tons.  During  the  past  six  years  more 
ore  has  been  discovered  in  Northern  Michigan,  Wisconsin  and  Minne- 
sota than  was  supposed  to  have  ever  existed  up  to  that  time.  Mining 
is  being  fast  reduced  to  a  science.  Our  shafts  today  are  being  built 
of  concrete  to  make  them  safe  and  durable.  The  local  managements 
include  the  best  equipped  men  that  technical  training  and  experience 
can  produce.  Mine  inspectors  are  appointed  by  our  boards  of  county 
supervisors.  These  inspectors  are  familiar  with  all  the  details  of 
practical  mining,  also  the  dangers  incident  to  that  hazardous  calling, 
and  their  duties  are  to  inspect  the  mine  at  least  once  a  month  to 
conserve  the  safety  of  the  men  employed  in  and  around  the  mines. 
Some  of  the  mines  require  the  men  before  beginning  work  to  sign  a 
contract  releasing  the  mines  from  liability  in  case  of  their  injury  or 
death  through  accident  while  at  work,  in  return  for  which  the  com- 
panies stipulate  certain  payments  graded  to  meet  the  degree  of  acci- 
dent sustained,  and  the  companies  also  agree  to  provide  competent 
inspection  of  dangerous  places.  We  have  the  very  latest  machinery  of 
all  kinds.  The  Pioneer  Iron  Company  is  manufacturing  charcoal.  The 
Cleveland  Cliff  Company  is  purely  a  mining  company,  which  is  now 
improving  its  water  powers,  and  improving  everything  in  such  a 
way  that  everything  is  very  cheaply  done  and  very  easily  handled. 
One  thing  I. want  to  mention,  and  perhaps  a  good  many  people  here 
will  be  surprised  when  I  tell  them  that  we  are  manufacturing  charcoal 
now  in  the  city  of  Marquette,  and  from  the  smoke  of  the  charcoal 
furnace  we  manufacture  many,  many  different  products,  such  as  creo- 
sote, wood  alcohol,  rose-water  perfumery,  formaldehyde,  white  wine 
vinegar,  sulphuric  acid  and  many  kinds  of  medicines.  The  great  value 
of  these  products  makes  them  finally  the  principal  one  and  the  iron 
the  by-product.  Between  the  iron  and  the  wood  the  medicines  are 
collected  and  then  refined  through  the  combination  of  both  iron  and 
alcohol,  which  are  used  to  precipitate  them  in  such  a  way  as  to  make 
the  different  articles.  We  also  make  chloroform.  It  is  simply  won- 


24  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

derful  what  is  bejng  done.  When  we  first  began  our  lake  shipments 
<of  iron  ore,  our  methods  were  so  primitive  in  handling  the  same  that 
;it  required  from  12  to  14  days  to  load  a  500-ton  vessel.  Today  by  more 
.improved  dock  and  other  facilities  we  can  load  a  10,000-ton  vessel 
'inside  of  4  hours.  For  the  information  of  this  Mining  Congress  I  will 
read  the  following  from  the  report  of  the  mineral  statiscian  for  the  state 
of  Michigan  for  the  year  1909: 

The  ore  producers  of  the  Lake  Superior  District  had  a  record  year 
in  1909. 

The  total  of  shipments  was  the  largest  in  the  history  of  the 
region  and  showed  a  gain  of  more  than  70  per  cent  over  1908. 

Notwithstanding  a  shortage  of  labor  and  the  somewhat  restless 
condition  of  general  business,  the  work  of  producing  and  shipping  iron 
ore  proceeded  with  great  vigor.  Important  discoveries  were  made  and 
large  bodies  added  to  the  total  known  ore  reserves. 

The  figures  below  show  the  shipments  by  ranges  including  in 
Michigan,  the  Marquette,  Menominee  and  Gogebic  ranges,  and  in 
Minnesota,  the  Mesabi  and  Vermilion  ranges. 

The  following  table  shows  the  shipments,  by  ranges,  of  Lake  Su- 
perior iron  ore  from  1902  to  1910  inclusive: 

Total, 
Year.  long  tons. 

1902    27,562,566 

1903 24,271,761 

1904   21,755,359 

1905    34,252,115 

1906    38,421,173 

1907    42,170,878 

1908 26,892,538 

1909    42,504, 1 1 0 

1910 • 46,600,000 

Total  production  of  Lake  Superior  iron  ore  by  ranges,  from  dis- 
covery to  1910  inclusive,  in  long  tons: 

Mesabi 195,703,424 

Marquette    91,903,991 

Menominee     71,313,115 

Gogebic    60,820,503 

Vermilion 29,125,385 


495,566,415 

The  first  iron  ore  sold  at  Lower  Lake  Ports  was  in  1855  and  the 
price  was  $10.00  per  ton  at  the  Lower  Lake  Ports.  The  next  year  the 
price  dropped  to  $8.00  per  ton,  for  both  Bessemer  and  non-Bessemer. 

MARQUETTE  RANGE. 
Year.  Bessemer.       Non-Bessemer. 

1855  $10.00  $10.00 

1856 8.00  8.00 

1857 8.00  8.00 

1858 6.50  6.50 

1859 6.00  6.00 

I860 5.25  5.50 

}861  5.25  5.00 

862  5.25  5.37 

J863  7.50  7.50 

864  8.50  8.50 

865 7.50  7.50 

J866 9.50  14.00 

}867  10.50  11.50 

868  8.25   .  8.25 

8.25  9.50 

8.50  9.50 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  25 

1871  .  8.00  8.00 

1872  9.00  7.50 

1873  12.00  9.00 

1874  9.00  7.00 

1875  7.00  5.50 

1876 6.75  4.50 

1877 6.50  4.25 

1878  5.50  4.25 

1879  6.25  4.75 

1880  9.25  8.00 

1881  9.00  7.00 

1882  9.00  6.25 

1883  6.25  5.00 

1884  5.76  4.50 

1885  .  5.50  4.25 
•    1886  .                                         5.50  475 

1887  .  7.25  5.25 

1888  5.50       ,  4.75 

1889  .  5.50  4.50 

1890  .  6.75  5.75 

1891  6.00  4.75 

1892  5.50  4.85 

1893  4.25  •                   3.50 

1894  2.75  2.15 

1895  .  3.50  2.30 

1896  .  4.00  2.85 

1897  . . .  2.65  2.60 

1898  3.35  2.45 

1899  3.50  2.50 

1900  6.48  5.00     » 

1901  4.92  3.85 

1902  5.00  4.00 

1903  5.15  4.25 

1904  3.85  3.35 

1905  3.75  3.20 

1906  4.25  3.70 

- 1907 5.00  4.20 

1908  4.50  3.70 

1909 4.50  3.70 

1910  5.00  4.20 

In  1909  the  total  shipment  of  Lake  Superior  iron  ores  amounted 
to  41,700,000  long  tons,  of  which  about  7,000,000  tons  were  distributed  in 
Lake  Michigan,  and  33,700,000  tons  reached  ports  on  Lake  Erie,  a  small 
quantity  passing  on  to  Lake  Ontario  and  beyond. ^ 

At  the  west  end  of  Lake  Superior  water  shipments  amounting  to 
29,200,000  long  tons,  coming  from  the  Mesabi  and  Vermilion  ranges, 
were  made  from  Two  Harbors  and  Duluth,  Minn.,  and  Superior,  Wis. 
These  were  increased  to  33,000,000  long  tons  by  the  addition  of  3,800,000 
tons  from  the  Gogebic  range  forwarded  from  Ashland,  Wis.,  and  were 
still  further  increased  to  35,900,000  tons  by  shipments  from  the  Mar- 
quette range,  via  Marquette,  Mich.,  and  by  a  small  quantity  from  the 
Michipicoten  range  in  Canada. 

With  the  exception  of  a  comparatively  small  tonnage  required  for 
local  blast  furnaces,  this  immense  quantity  passed  through  the  Sault 
Ste.  Marie  canals  and  moved  on  to  the  Straits  of  Mackinac,  where  a 
part  of  the  ore  from  the  Lake  Superior  ports,  together  with  some  ore 
from  the  port  of  Escanaba  (the  point  of  shipment  both  for  the  Menom- 
inee  range  ores  and  for  part  of  the  Marquette  range  ores)  proceeded 
down  Lake  Michigan  to  various  ports,  such  as  Milwaukee,  Fruitport, 
Chicago  and  Gary.  Some  of  the  furnaces  at  these  ports  also  obtain 
considerable  ore  from  local  mines  in  Wisconsin.  The  remainder  of 
the  ore  from  Escanaba  passed  eastward  through  the  Straits  of  Mackinac 
and,  with  the  shipments  from  Moose  Mountain,  Ontario,  joined  the 


26  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

main  column  through  Lake  Huron,  some  being  disposed  of  at  Mid- 
land, Ontario,  and  Detroit,  Mich.,  but  the  great  bulk  being  distributed 
to  the  lower  lake  receiving  docks  at  Toledo,  Sandusky,  Huron,  Lorain, 
Cleveland,  Fairport,  Ashtabula  and  Conneaut,  Ohio,  Erie,  Pa.,  and 
Buffalo  and  Tonawanda,  N.  Y. 

I  want  to  say  that  I  attended  a  good  roads  congress  not  long  ago 
in  this  very  building,  and  resolutions  were  passed  organizing  a  good 
roads  committee  in  each  state,  and  I  would  like  to  see  a  mining  com- 
mission appointed  in  each  state  to  report  to  this  general  Congress,  and 
I  believe  that  it  would  be  a  good  thing  for  the  mining  business,  and  I 
further  think  that  mining  ought  to  be  taken  up  by  the  National  Govern- 
ment and  it  should  give  its  loyal  support  to  the  mining  business  as  well 
as  it  does  to  the  agricultural  industry.  It  seems  they  have  seven  millions 
of  dollars  to  improve  the  agricultural  industry  and  the  mining  indus- 
try seems  to  be  next  to  agriculture,  which  is  one  of  the  most  necessary 
products  that  the  world  needs  and  must  have.  I  think  by  urging  this 
matter  to  Congress  that  it  will  succeed,  from  what  I  have  understood, 
and  make  mining  more  prosperous  than  it  is  at  this  time.  I  am  making  ' 
the  first  representation  from  our  Michigan  mining  district,  of  which 
there  has  been  little  thought  of  up  to  this  time,  but  I  find  it  is  a  matter 
of  great  importance  and  should  be  well  cared  for  by  our  mining  people 
from  my  state  of  Michigan,  and  I  assure  you  that  in  your  next  Con- 
gress there  will  be  a  better  representation  here  than  there  is  today.  As 
a  member  and  delegate  I  want  to  thank  you  for  your  kind  attention 
and  for  the  kind  treatment  I  have  received.  (Applause.) 

MR.  S.  A.  TAYLOR,  Pennsylvania:  Mr.  Chairman:  There  are  a 
number  of  things  to  come  before  this  meeting  and  I  move  at  this  time 
that  we  adjourn  to  meet  at  8  o'clock  this  evening. 

Whereupon  an  adiournment  was  taken  until  8  o'clock  p.  m. 

TUESDAY,  OCTOBER  24,  1911. 
Evening  Session. 

The  evening  session  was  devoted  to  the  entertainment  of  the 
visiting  delegates  at  a  smoker  tendered  by  the  business  men  of  Chicago 
at  which  refreshments  were  served  and  the  responses  on  behalf  of  the 
several  states  were  interspersed  with  some  instrumental  and  much  vocal 
music.  Mr.  Harry  N.  Taylor,  President  of  the  Illinois  Coal  Operators' 
Association,  acted  as  toastmaster. 

THE  TOASTMASTER:  Mr.  Lawrence  E.  McGann  will  say  a 
few  words  on  behalf  of  the  Hon.  Carter  H.  Harrison,  Mayor  of 
Chicago. 

MR.  McGANN:  Mr.  Toastmaster  and  Gentlemen  of  the  Congress: 
When  the  Mayor  of  our  city  asked  me  to  attend  this  meeting  this  even- 
ing in  his  behalf  he  told  me  to  tell  you  that  he  exceedingly 
regretted  his  inability  to  attend  this  meeting  so  that  he  might 
personally  extend  to  you  most  hearty  welcome.  1  have  been  reminded 
that  I  was  not  expected  to  make  a  speech,  which  is  wholly  pleasing  to 
me,  but  I  would  like  to  take  this  opportunity  10  say  that  in  no  city  in 
the  Union  will  be  more  appreciated  many  of  the  subjects  that  you  have 
under  consideration,  the  general  conservation  of  great  natural  values, 
and  added  to  them  the  greater  subject  and  also  one  of  the  great  econ- 
omies, the  conservation  of  life  and  limb  as  well  as  the  preservation  of 
property.  The  conservation  of  individual  interests  that  will  protect 
American  education  and  intelligence  has  passed  the  day  where  the  man 
who  ignores  it  can  succeed.  The  individual  interests  of  the  different 
classes  of  trade  and  combinations  that  go  to  make  up  the  great  Amer- 
ican nation,  will  be  contended  for  with  an  intelligence  such  as  has  not 
been  known  in  any  other  part  of  the  world.  The  intelligence  that  is  taught 
in  our  public  and  our  private  schools,  and  that  is  inborn  in  every  Amer- 
ican citizen  breathing  in  the  free  air  of  America;  the  consciousness  of  a 
proper  interest  in  his  own  individual  self  and  in  the  nation,  and  the  cour- 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  27 

age  to  preserve  the  values  in  his  individual  self  and  in  those  associated 
with  him;  that  is  the  conservation  of  today;  that  is  the  conservation  that 
the -engineers  of  every  character,  that  the  financiers  of  every  characer, 
that  the  captains  of  industry  must  recognize  as  the  dominating  question 
of  America  and  of  the  world,  and  I  congratulate  you,  gentlemen,  on  the 
gathering  here  and  the  calling  into  being  of  a  Congress  of  gentlemen 
so  intelligent,  so  capable,  so  addicted  to  the  habit  of  computing  values 
and  of  Determining  chances,  and  of  recognizing  facts  when  you  meet 
them  and  of  formulating  plans  for  success. 

You  will  pardon  me  for  taking  advantage  of  this  opportunity  to 
express  these  views,  but  they  were  impressed  upon  me  as  I  entered 
this  hall  this  evening  by  a  gentleman  whom  I  have  met  frequently  and 
who  is  active  in  this  association.  An  expression  of  his  inspired  me,  or 
suggested  to  me  that  these  thoughts,  or  an  expression  of  them,  would 
not  come  amiss  at  this  time.  I  thank  you,  Mr.  Toastmaster  and  gen- 
tlemen. (Applause.) 

THE  TOASTMASTER:  We  will  now  hear  from  a  gentleman 
whose  almost  untiring  efforts  during  the  past  two  or  three  months  ha? 
made  this  meeting  of  the  American  Mining  Congress  such  a  success 
as  it  is,  Mr.  C.  M.  Moderwell,  Chairman  of  the  Executive  Committee. 

MR.  MODKRWELL:  Mr.  Chairman:  I  announced  at  the 
meeting  this  afternoon  that  I  had  made  my  last  appearance,  and  I  didn't 
know  anything  further  would  be  required  of  me  tonight  except  to  takj 
my  share  of  the  provender.  Speaking  for  myself,  and  for  the  gentlemen 
who  have  already  expressed  themselves  in  the  same  way,  we  are  very 
anxious  to  get  to  the  actual  business  of  the  evening,  and  I  am  not 
going  to  disappoint  them  by  making  a  speech  at  this  time.  I  have 
better  taste.  (Applause.) 

The  Toastmaster  then  called  on  Mr.  T.  H.  O'Brien,  New  Mexico. 

MR.  O'BRIEN:  Mr.  O'Brien  will  also  show  his  good  taste  by 
not  saying  anything  this  evening.  Thank  you.  (Applause.) 

The  Toastmaster  then  called  on  Mr.  Horace  L.  Chapman,  of  Ohio. 

MR.  CHAPMAN:  Mr.  Toastmaster  and  gentlemen  of  the  American 
Mining  Congress:  I  did  not  come  here  for  the  purpose  of  making  a 
speech,  but  I  came  here  to  be  a  listener  and  to  learn  something  from 
gentlemen  here  more  familiar  and  better  qualified  to  talk  upon  the  sub- 
jects for  which  this  Congress  was  organized. 

I  desire  on  the  part  of  Ohio  to  tender  to  this  Congress  and  to  the 
city  of  Chicago  and  my  friend,  Harry  Taylor,  whom  I  have  known  for 
many  years,  the  thanks  of  our  people  for  your  hospitality  upon  this 
occasion,  and  I  hope  that  the  results  of  this  Mining  Congress  as  organ- 
ized, in  the  future  will  bring  great  improvement  to  all  the  industries 
which  it^  represents,  and  especially  to  the  coal  industry  of  the  central 
competitive  field. 

I  came  here  many  years  ago  when  a  boy,  you  might  say,  more 
than  half  a  century  ago,  to  this  city  of  Chicago  when  Cincinnati  in  pop- 
ulation rivaled  it.  Now,  where  are  you?  Two  and  three-quarters  mil- 
lions people,  the  second  largest  city  upon  this  continent,  and  in  mv 
judgment  in  another  half  century,  if  no  misfortune  befalls,  Illinois  will 
boast  of  having  the  city  of  the  largest  population  in  this  country  if  n&t 
rivaling  England's  capital — London.  (Applause.)  I  came  here  many 
years  ago  to  a  convention  of  operators,  miners  of  coal,  when  an  arrange- 
ment was  made  by  which  .we  entered  into  contracts  covering  that  indus- 
try, and  I  shall  never  forget  the  scourging  that  the  Chicago  newspapers 
gave  me  for  more  than  two  weeks  every  day  from  one  to  two  columns 
in  each  of  them,  because  they  claimed  that  I  was  holding  up  the  con- 
vention on  the  part  of  Ohio  for  some  interests  that  were  there,  that  we 
should  not  be  unjustly  dealt  with,  but  when  the  outcome  came  those 
same  gentlemen  had  to  take  back  every  word  that  they  had  said  con- 
cerning me  as  an  individual.  I  thank  you,  gentlemen,  ^for  the  honor 
that  you  have  conferred  in  calling  upon  me  to  make  a 'short  address. 
(Applause.) 


28  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

THE  TOASTMASTER:  There  is  a  gentleman  here  who  by  splen- 
did efforts  in  the  past  was  one  of  the  main  factors  in  getting  certain 
legislation  passed  which  has  had  great  bearing  upon  the  mining  indus- 
try of  this  country,  Honorable  John  C.  Chancy,  of  Indiana,  former 
member  of  Congress. 

MR.  CHANEY:  Mr.  Toastmaster  and  Gentlemen  of  the  Amer- 
ican Mining  Congress:  Indiana  never  fails  to  make  a  speech 
when  it  has  permission.  I  come  from  the  region  in  Indiana  of  the  very 
best  quality  of  bituminous  coal  (laughter).  We  have  millions  invested 
in  those  enterprises,  and  we  have  until  the  Mining  Congress  began  to 
pay  attention  to  us,  never  conserved  our  resources  for  they  were  prac- 
tically exhaustless,  and  we  haven't  begun  to  appreciate  that  the  end 
is  anywhere  in  sight  this  side  of  the  millennium. 

I  am  very  pleased  to  have  a  part,  a  small  part,  in  disposing  of  the 
provender  of  this  occasion  and  to  touch  elbows  with  the  men  who  rep- 
resent the  great  mining  industries  of  the  United  States  and  of  Canada 
and  possibly  elsewhere.  I  am  glad  to  be  introduced  as  having  had 
something  to  do  with  legislation  which  furthers  the  interests  of  the 
various  sorts  of  mines  throughout  the  country.  I  am  glad  to  have  been 
able  to  be  a  part  in  the  establishment  of  the  Bureau  of  Mines  in  the 
United  States,  but  I  am  particularly  pleased  with  having  had  the  oppor- 
tunity to  propose  and  see  passed  the  appropriation  which  enabled  the 
rescue  stations  of  the  country  to  be  established  for  the  conservation 
of  human  life.  We  have  been  interested  in  excellence  and  we  have 
achieved  excellence  in  nearly  all  the  branches  of  human  effort,  and  it 
is  this  fact  which  has  made  the  United  States  of  America  rank  fore- 
most in  the  civilization  of  the  earth.  I  am  pleased  to  know  that  we 
reach  out  after  excellence  in  every  department  of  life.  Mr.  John  Dern 
succeeded  in  achieving  excellence  in  the  gold  mining  department  of 
human  effort  through  cyanide.  Now,  I  do  not  know  whether  it  is  safe 
for  everybody  to  indulge  in  cyanide  as  a  means  of  achieving  excellence 
or  not.  Over  at  Boston  the  other  day  there  was  a  man  who  indulged 
in  cyanide  as  the  means  of  disposing  of  one  of  his  sweethearts  so  that 
he  might  enjoy  the  other,  and  over  there  the  newspapers  say  that  is 
the  durnest  way  in  the  world  of  disposing  of  your  sweetheart  (laugh- 
ter). I  believe,  however,  in  excellence  and  all  things  that  go  to  achieve 
excellence.  I  understand  that  the  Mining  Congress  seeks  to  lift  up  to 
the  highest  possible  level  all  of  these  various  energies  of  human  life, 
and  therefore  I  am  somewhat  disposed  to  find  fault  with  what  is  teem- 
ing throughout  the  country  in  the  way  of  an  endeavor  to  eliminate  com- 
petition which  has  always  heretofore  been  the  spice  of  life,  for  it  seems 
to  me  that  when  we  eliminate  competition  we  to  a  certain  extent  elim- 
inate emulation  and  therefore  interfere  with  excellence.  So  far  as  pos- 
sible I  would  hold  fast  to  competition  that  we  may  go  on'  to  higher 
and  better  results  and  achieve  excellence  in  all  departments  of  life. 

I  congratulate  this  Congress  in  its  great  assembly  of  people  so 
intently  interested  in  the  highest  usefulness  of  the.  mining  industry  for 
through  the  minerals  which  have  been  brought  out  of  the  earth  and 
are  to  be  brought  out  of  the  earth  are  contributed  the  fundamental  prin- 
ciples of  progress.  We  may  talk  of  invention  but  only  as  applied  to 
these  things  which  are  dug  out  of  the  earth  will  invention  bring  us  on 
to  greater  victories  and  more  wonderful  achievement. 

I  am  proud,  too,  that  we  are  able  to  meet  in  this  great  city  of 
Chicago  which  has  within  it  all  of  the  elements  which  embellish  and 
encourage  higher  civilization.  Truly  here  everybody  -is  welcome  that 
you  may  distribute  your  gold  to  these  people,  v/elcome  that  you  may 
disburse  here  your  money  among  this  people,  and  also  help  them  to 
estimate  their  value  not  only  in  dollars  and  cents  but  in  the  height  and 
depth  and  breadth  of  their  buildings.  Let  us,  therefore,  not  only  ap- 
preciate where  we  are  but  realize  the. fact  that  we  are  here  to  learn  of 
these  men  who  have  made  life  a  specialty,  who  have  studied  each  of 
these  departments  with  care  and  with  resolution  and  let  us  with  that 
aggressive  spirit  drink  in  from  these  men  whose  lives  are  pitched  in 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  29 

these  fields  of  splendid  effort  and  go  home  to  our  various  places  and 
apply  those  principles  to  the  best  interests  of  the  communities  whence 
we  come.  To  the  coal  miners  of  the  country  we  especially  send  greet- 
ing and  when  you  want  to  make  an  investment  that  is  worth  some- 
thing, when  you  want  to  estimate  values  that  amount  to  something, 
come  down  to  Sullivan  County,  Indiana,  and  invest  in  coal  land.  (Ap- 
plause.) 

THE  TOASTMASTER:  It  is  now  my  pleasure  to  introduce  a 
representative  of  the  South,  Prof.  E.  L.  Martin,  of  Atlanta,  Georgia. 

PROF.  MARTIN:  Mr.  Toastmaster:  Reference  to  the  printed 
program  will  show  that  Mr.  T.  R.  Lombard  was  scheduled  to  respond 
on  behalf  of  Georgia  to  the  very  gracious  and  eloquent  welcome  extended 
to  the  Mining  Congress  this  afternoon.  As  it  so  happens  that  only 
myself  is  present,  from  that  state,  I  have  been  informed  by  pur  Sec- 
retary that  the  program  committee  has  unanimously  and  enthusiastically 
done  me  the  high  honor  of  selecting  me  to  appear  this  evening  as  M,r. 
Lombard's  substitute. 

Now,  Mr.  Chairman,  that  fact  was  only  communicated  to  me  a 
few  moments  ago,  and  in  such  service  as  I  have  seen  in  the  matter  of 
making  occasional  public  addresses,  it  has  always  been  with  me  a 
mooted  question,  whether  it  was  the  more  painful  to  be  loaded  with 
a  speech  and  not  have  an  opportunity  to  go  off,  or  not  to  be  loaded, 
be  compelled  to  go  off.  In  view  of  the  embarrassment  under  which 
1  labor  at  this  moment,  I  am  inclined  to  resolve  the  doubt  in  favor  of 
the  latter  predicament,  and  before  I  conclude,  I  fear  that  my  auditors 
may  unite  in  making  this  view  of  it  unanimous. 

Hailing  as  I  do  from  Atlanta — the  livest  municipal  wire  in  all 
Dixieland — I  have  been  much  gratified  to  observe  the  pride  which 
Chicagoans  very  naturally  and  deservedly  feel  in  having  their  city 
referred  to  as  "The  Atlanta  of  the  Northwest." 

As  school  children,  we  learned  from  the  Roman  general  and  his- 
torian, Julius  Caesar,  that  Omnia  Gallia  Divisa  Est  in  Partes  Tres. 
Should  the  average  Atlantian  be  called  upon  to  give  the  history  of  his 
city,  he  would  undoubtedly  begin  by  declaring  that  "All  Atlanta  is 
divided  into  three  parts — one  of  which  is  the  Southern  states,  and  the 
other  two  Atlanta."  From  what  I  have  heard  and  also  observed  of  the 
Chicago  spirit  I  doubt  not  that  the  loyal  Chicagoan  would  declare  that 
"All  Chicago  is  divided  into  three  parts,  one  of  which  is  the  United 
States  and  the  other  two  Chicago."  And  I  am  inclined  to  think  that 
the  members  of  this  Congress  present  from  all  parts  of  the  country 
who  are  partaking  of  your  royal  hospitality  would  applaud  the  sentiment. 

Mr.  Chairman,  I  observe  that  a  very  large  majority  of  the  mem- 
bership of  this  Congress  is  composed  of  gentlemen  who  come  from  the 
states  of  the  West,  conspicuous  for  their  mineral  wealth,  while  I  hail 
from  a  state  whose  citizens  are  interested  in  the  mining  industry,  chiefly 
as  investors,  but  their  interest  is  none  the  less  keen  and  vital  because 
of  this  difference. 

I  believe  it  is  well  authenticated  that  about  the  earliest  successful 
gold  mining  done  in  the  United  States  was  in  Georgia,  and  that  prom- 
inent among  the  forty-niners  who  opened  up  the  gold  fields  of  California, 
were  the  hardy  miners  from  the  "Empire  State  of  the  South."  It  is  now 
patent  however  to  our  people  that  Georgia  gives  promise  of  only  scant 
reward  to  those  who  seek  the  precious  metals  within  her  confines.  But 
conscious  as  they  are  of  the  fact  that  the  Generous  Giver  of  All  Good 
has  filled  to  overflowing  with  golden  treasure  the  great  rock-ribbed 
vaults  which  He  fashioned  and  placed  among  the  mountain  fastnesses 
of  the  West,  and  that  He  intended  that  all  His  children  who  might 
possess  the  courage  to  seek  this  rich  and  goodly  heritage  should  become 
sharers  therein,  our  people  have  resolved  to  co-operate  with  their 
brethren  of  the  West,  by  furnishing  much  of  the  capital  necessary  to 
unlock  and  develop  it. 

I  am  gratified  to  say  to  you,  sir,  and  to  all  others  present,  that  in 
many  instances  they  are.  beginning  to  reap  the  fruits  of  their  faith 


30  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

and  courage.  They  have  only  asked  and  shall  only  continue  to  ask  that 
they  be  given  the  truth  regarding  the  propositions  in  which  they  are 
requested  to-invest,  and  that  they  be  dealt  with  fairly  and  honestly.  On 
their  behalf  I  wish  to  say  that  they  look  to  this  organization  to  insist 
that  laws  be  enacted  in  each  of  the  mining  states  (as  has  already  been 
done  in  quite  a  number)  which  will  give  to  them  and  their  investment, 
protection  from  the  fakir  and  the  bunco  steerer.  With  this  done  eastern 
and  southern  capital  will  flow  westward  with  ever-increasing  tide  to 
develop  the  latent  mineral  wealth  which  there  abounds. 

In  conclusion,  Mr.  Chairman,  permit  me  again  to  thank  you  and 
the  citizens  of  Chicago,  for  your  royal  hospitality,  and  to  say  I  belieye 
that  here,  in  pre-eminent  degree,  is  found  that  virile,  vigorous  spirit, 
which  typifies  American  life  and  progress,  making  of  the  United  States 
the  undisputed  queen  among  the  sisterhood  of  nations,  and  of  Chicago 
the  brightest  gem  in  the  coronet  of  cities  which  bedecks  her  brow. 

THE  TOASTMASTER:  We  will  now  hear  from  a  distinguished 
engineer,  Mr.  Philip  N.  Moore,  of  Missouri. 

MR.  MOORE:  I  have  been  informed  that  it  has  been  the  im- 
memorial custom  of  this  assemblage  to  call  for  a  response  on  behalf 
of  the  state  of  Missouri  from  your  distinguished  member  and  my  dis- 
tinguished friend,  Dr.  Buckley,  but  Dr.  Buckley  is  no  longer  eligible 
for  some  reason,  perhaps  the  terror  of  these  responses  or  the  fear  that 
the  habit  of  much  speaking  might'  grow  chronic  with  him,  anyhow  he 
has  left  our  state.  Possessing  a  pull  of  favoritism  unexampled  he  calls 
on  the  speaker,  unused  to  such  things,  to  represent  the  grand  old  State 
of  which  he  is  a  most  unworthy  member.  -  It  is  one  of  the  advantages 
of  years,  it  has  plenty  of  disadvantages,  but  one  can  recall  in  his  own 
observations  the  various  fluctuations  of. the  industries  in  his  state.  In 
the  days  of  long  ago  your  speaker,  a  youngster  on  the  geological  sur- 
vey, hoping  to  attain  immortal  fame  at  $75.00  a  month,  used  to  hear 
one  of  the  great  orators  of  Missouri  _  who  regularly  was  called  upon  as 
the  reserve  whenever  the  appropriation  for  the  geological  survey  was 
in  danger.  The  colonel  had  one  speech,  it  always  came,  he  begged  the 
members  of  the  legislature  to  realize  the  enormous  mineral  resources 
of  the  state  which  were  now  deeply  buried  in  the  bowels  of  the  earth 
calling  for  danger  and  grime  and  heavy  expense  for  their  realization 
but  that  they  stood  forth  proudly  on  the  crests  of  the  mountains  where 
sun-kissed  they  first  greeted  the  coming  of  the  dawn.  Gentlemen,  the 
iron  ores  of  Missouri,  which  in  those  days  first  greeted  the  coming  of 
the  dawn,  long  since  have  gone  underground  and  from  the  old  state 
comes  in  .its  place  not  the  iron  but  the  lead  and  zinc  which  make  her 
memorable,  and  the  coal  which  in  time  will  make  her  rank  with  the  old 
state  of  Indiana. 

If  you  will  pardon  me  for  but  a  moment,  gentlemen,  I  have  heard 
this  evening  the  word  conservation.  We  conjure  with  that  word,  we 
use  it  loosely  and  inaccurately,  but  I  want,  as  this  is  the  only  chance 
I  shall  have  at  this  meeting  to  be  heard,  I  want  to  call  your  attention 
to  one  danger  in  the  line  of  conservation,  to  one  leak,  to  one  untouched 
feature  which  in  our  growing  regulations  by  labor  and  by  capital  seems 
to  be  gradually  dropped  out  of  sight.  I  refer  to  the  conservation  of 
industrial  liberty  (applause).  It  has  been  my  fortune  not  long  since 
to  discuss  with  some  distinguished  members  of  our  profession  the  con- 
ditions in  mining  in  one  of  the  great  nations  on  the  other  side  where 
the  rule  is  that  everything  is  forbidden  which  is  not  permitted;  with 
us  it  has  been  our  proud  boast  that  everything  is  -permitted  which  is 
not  forbidden.  In  the  growing  regulation  from  above  and  from  below 
it  seems  to  me,  and  gentlemen,  it  behooves  us  all  to  remember  that  our 
gains,  as  we  have  made  them,  have  been  made  by  industrial  and  indi- 
vidual liberty  (applause). 

The  Toastmaster  then  introduced  Mr.  John  Gillie,  of  Montana.. 
MR.    GILLIE:     I   feel  like  telling  Mr.   Taylor  the   same   thing  he 
told  me  a  few  minutes  ago.     However,  I  am  very  glad  to  have  a  chance 
to  say  something  and  of  having  the  opportunity  to  be  here.     This  is  a 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  31 

very  representative  meeting  of  the  mining  industry,  and  coming  from 
Butte  I  might  give  you  a  whole  lot  of  statistics  on  copper,  but  I  think 
as  we  are  met  here  this  evening  matters  of  that  kind  would  not  be  very 
interesting  to  you.  So  I  shall  merely  thank  you  for  the  compliment. 

THE  TOASTMASTER:  I  take  pleasure  in  calling  upon  Mr.  C. 
N.  Gould.,  to  respond  on  behalf  of  the  state  of  Oklahoma. 

MR.  GOULD:  No  equal  area  that  the  sun  shines  upon  has,  during 
recorded  history,  made  such  rapid,  majterial  development  as  has  Okla- 
homa during  the  past  ten  years.  Her  history  reads  like  a  romance. 
Even  those  of  us  who  have  had  a  part  in  this  development  can  scarcely 
realize  the  wonderful  advancement  that  has  taken  place. 

Where  twenty  years  ago  were  bare  plains  are  now  flourishing 
cities;  where,  ten  years  ago,  were  wooden  shacks,  now  stand  twelve 
story  sky-scrapers;  where  ox  teams  and  cow  ponies  crossed  the  plains 
are  now  long  lines  of  steam  railroad  and  trolley  cars. 

Oklahoma  has  grown,  not  by  accident,  but  because  of  the  fact  that 
she  is  endowed  with  unparalleled  natural  resources.  With  soil  and 
climate  unsurpassed,  no  state  in  the  Union  has  such  varied  agricultural 
resources.  In  the  increase  in  the  mileage  of  railroads,  the  increase  in 
bank  deposits,  and  increase  in  population  in  the  two  chief  cities  during 
the  past  ten  years,  she  leads  the  world. 

But  it  is  in  the  matter  of  minerals  that  you,  as  delegates  to  the 
American  Mining  Congress,  are  interested.  And  in  minerals  Oklahoma 
is  richly  endowed.  No  State  has  either  a  greater  variety  or  a  greater 
amount. 

Material  prosperity  is  based  on  power,  and  power  is  dependent  on 
fuel.  The  state  that  possesses  large  amounts  of  fuel  has  a  great  advan- 
tage over  a  state  without  fuel.  Oklahoma  has  80,000,000,000  tons  of 
coal  locked  up  in  her  hills;  she  produced  last  year  54,000,000  barrels  of 
petroleum,  and  has  a  daily  production  of  2,000,000,000  cubic  feet  of  gas. 
She  has  asphalt  enough  to  pave  all  the  streets  of  all  the  cities  of  the 
United  States  for  a  thousand  years;  her  lead  and  zinc  mines  are  as 
prolific  as  those  of  Missouri;  she  has  125,000,000,000  tons  of  gypsum — 
enough  to  make  10,000  tons  of  plaster  daily  for  43,000  years;  she  has 
salt  water  enough  to  make  500  cars  of  salt  a  day;  she  has  a  ledge  of 
glass  sand  fifty  feet  thick  and  one  hundred  miles  long;  manganese  and 
hematite  iron  ore  of  high  grade;  mountains  of  granite  and  marble; 
sandstone  and  limestone,  with  Portland  cement  rock,  clays  and  shales 
in  inexhaustible  quantities. 

All  the  minerals,  that  go  toward  the  development  of  a  prosperous 
state  are  found  in  great  abundance  in  Oklahoma,  including  the  struc- 
tural materials,  the  metals  and  the  fuel  for  their  manufacture. 

At  the  present  time  not  one-half  of  one  per  cent  of  the  mineral 
wealth  of  the  state  has  been  developed.  We  in  Oklahoma  are  sending 
out  of  the  state  for  practically  everything  we  use  in  the  way  of  manu- 
factured articles.  Our  salt,  our  lime,  our  granite,  our  building  stone, 
our  brick,  our  tile,  our  Portland  cement,  our  asphalt,  and  even  much  of 
our  coal,  are  produced  in  other  states. 

What  Oklahoma  needs  more  than  anything  else  at  the  present 
time  is  more  money  to  develop  its  mineral  resources.  With  vast  unde- 
veloped resources  in  our  midst,  a  region  containing  a  large  and  rapidly 
increasing  population,  the  utilization  of  her  minerals  is  but  a  question 
of  time.  No  better  investment  can  be  made  than  in  mines,  plants  and 
factories  under  conditions  such  as  now  obtain  in  Oklahoma. 

The  Toastmaster  then  introduced  Mr.  Eli  T.  Connor,  of  Philadel- 
phia. 

.  MR.  CONNOR:  Mr.  Chairman,  Gentlemen  of  the  Mining  Con- 
gress: The  excellent  addresses  to  which  I  have  listened  today,  and  this 
evening,  leave  very  little  for  the  delegate  from  Philadelphia  to  say.  We 
have  heard  from  most  of  the  great  mining  states  of  the  Union;  from 
the  representative  of  our  neighbors  on  the  North,  Canada;  -and  from 
the  delegate  of  our  great  and  good  friend,  the  Republic  of  France,  that 
which  is  instructive,  pleasing  and  entertaining. 


32  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

The  wonderful  advances  that  have  been  made  in  the  art  of  mining, 
in  our  great  western  states,  in  the  past  few  years,  are  of  great  interest 
to  all  mining  men,  but  particularly  to  miners  from  the  old  Keystone 
State.  As  this  is  the  first  meeting  of  the  Mining  Congress  that  it  has 
been  my  good  fortune  to  attend,  I  cannot  help  but  express  some  sur- 
prise that  the  state  which  is  foremost  in  quantity  and  value  of  products 
of  the  mine,  is  not  more  largely  represented  at  this  gathering.  It  is 
'hardly  necessary  for  me  to  mention  here,  in  the  presence  of  these  emi- 
nent mining  men  from  all  over  the  country,  and  who  have  so  elo- 
quently portrayed  the  progress  of  each  of  their  several  states,  the  fact 
that  many  of  the  progressive  miners  of  the  country  took  their  first 
lessons  in  underground  development  in  Pennsylvania.  The  representa- 
tive of  his  Majesty's  government  has  quite  properly  designated  Great 
Britain  as  the  "Great.  Mother"  of  the  mining  industry.  I  had  thought 
of  applying  this  term  to  the  Keystone  State,  but  as  it  has  already  been 
pre-empted,  I  will  claim  for  Pennsylvania  that  it  is  the  "Daddy"  of  the 
American  mining  man.  Wherever  I  go,  in  coal  mines  of  the  country, 
as  far  west  as  the  Pacific  coast,  and  in  the  provinces  of  Canada,  I  meet 
men  whose  early  training  was  acquired  in  the  mines  of  some  part  of 
the  state  of  Pennsylvania,  and  I  believe  that  while  the  contribution  of 
my  state  to  the  economic  development  of  the  country,  of  its  products 
of  the  mine,  is  of  paramount  importance,  as  compared  with  all  other 
states  of  the  Union,  the  well-trained,  energetic,  and  resourceful  men 
who  have  there  been  developed,  and  who  have  scattered  to  all  points 
of  the  compass,  in  pursuit  of  the  great  mining  industry,  constitutes  a 
still  more  important  force  for  the  uplifting  of  mankind. 

I  have  before  mentioned  the  comparatively  small  representation 
of  my  state,  at  the  present  Congress,  but  I  wish  to  again  refer  to  it 
and  to  express  the  hope  that  the  next  annual  meeting  of  the  Congress 
may  be  in  my  home  city  of  Philadelphia,  which  as  is  probably  well 
known,  is  the  cradle  of  the  coal  mining  business,  the  oldest  known  coal 
corporation  in  Pennsylvania,  the  Lehigh  Coal  Mining  Co.,  having  been 
organized  in  Philadelphia,  in  1792,  this  being  the  origin  of  the  Lehigh 
Coal  &  Navigation  Co.,  which  is  still  one  of  the  most  prominent  anthra- 
cite coal  mining  companies  in  Pennsylvania. 

My  thought  is  that  if  the  Congress  will  select  Philadelphia  as  its 
next  place  of  gathering,  much  greater  interest  can  be  aroused  in  the 
objects  aimed  at  by  the  Congress,  .not  only  among  coal  mining  men  of 
the  East,  but  among  engineers,  owners  and  investors,  in  all  kinds  of 
mining  ventures,  throughout  the  country". 

T  have  been  authorized  by  the  mayor  of  the  city  of  Philadelphia, 
to  officially  invite  the  Congress  to  our  city,  next  year,  and  trust  that 
the  directors  of  the  Congress  will  take  favorable  action  upon  this 
invitation. 

The  Toastmaster  then  introduced  Dr.  J.  E.  Talmage,  of  Utah. 

DR.  TALMAGE:  I  am  honored  in  the  request  to  make  a  brief 
response  in  behalf  of  the  delegation  here  present  representing  the  State 
of  Utah,  to  the  address  of  welcome  to  which  we  have  listend  this  after- 
noon. In  thus  responding  I  am  not  unmindful  of  the  fact  that  Utah 
is  one  of  the  guests  of  the  great  state  of  Illinois  and  her  distinguished 
daughter.  It  would  be  more  in  accord  with  the  proprieties,  perhaps,  for 
the  guest  to  say  but  little  of  herself,  yet  I  am  specifically  invited  to  say 
a  word  with  respect  to  Utah  as  a  mining  state. 

I  can  say  with  assurance  that  Utah  stands  high  among  the  mining 
states — high  in  the  literal  sense,  for  even  our  valleys  are  a  mile  or  more 
above  sea  level,  and  our  mountains,  in  which  He  mineral  treasures  be- 
yond measure  or  count,  tower  to  nearly  three  times  that  altitude.  Even 
the  base  of  the  mighty  Wasatch  barrier  is  far  above  the  tops  of  the  Alle- 
ghenys.  Out  in  our  land  aviators  rise  from  the  ground  at  an  altitude 
which,  m  places  removed  from  the  mountains,  ordinarily  marks  the  cul- 
mination of  their  ascent. 

But  in  another  sense,  the  sense  of  importance  and  greatness,  Utah 
ranks  high  among  her  sister  states  engaged  in  the  mining  industry. 


AMERICAN  MINING  .CONGRESS  33 

Year  by  year  she  presents  a  continually  increasing  output  of  gold,  sil- 
ver, copper,  and  lead,  while  her  immense  reserves  of  iron  and  zinc  re- 
main practically  untouched.  Our  mineral  bi-products  represent  im- 
mense values.  It  was  said  today  by  the  distinguished  representative  from 
the  British  Dominion  on  the  north  that  Canada  had  enough  arsenic  to 
poison  all  the  people  of  the  United  States.  Of  Utah  it  may  be  said  that 
she  has  enough  to  poison  the  world.  She  has  been  allowing  a  million 
dollars  worth  a  year  to  escape  from  her  smelters,  until  the  law,  like  a 
watchful  guardian  compelled  her  to  curb  her  extravagant  waste.  As 
for  sulphur,  Utah  could  set  up  a  rival  institution  to  that  of  Satan  himself 
and  keep  the  sulphurous  fumes  going  for  ages.  Utah  has  salt  enough 
to  keep  the  world  from  spoiling  as  long  as  mankind  shall  need  to  be 
salted.  She  has  gypsum  enough  to  plaster  all  Paris  and  the  world  be- 
side. Her*  hydro-carbons  are  so  plentiful  that  only  the  best  and  rarest 
are  mined  and  marketed.  Among  the  producers  of  the  rarer  metals  she 
is  rapidly  attaining  a  place  of  enviable  importance.  She  is  exploiting 
deposits  of  minerals  containing  uranium  and  vanadium  and  the  yet 
rarer  radium  in  unique  combination. 

And  among  the  other  bi-products  of  the  mining  industry  Utah 
maintains  a  steady  yield  of  litigation  cases  in  number  and  richness  to 
keep  the  lawyers  working  double  shift.  Her  mills  and  smelters  are 
among  the  largest  in  the  world.  We  read  in  ancient  writ  that  by  faith, 
mountains  may  be  moved,  and  we  read  further  that  faith  without  work?; 
is  dead.  The  vitalized  faith  manifested  in  works  by  the  Utah  copper  pro- 
ducers is  literally  removing  an  entire  mountain,  slice  by  slice,  in  the 
Bingham  district. 

Utah  is  vitally  interested  in  the  work  of  the  American  Mining  Con- 
gress and  has  manifested  her  interest  in  that  organization  from  the 
first.  She  pledges  her  co-operation  and  aid  in  any  action  this  Congress 
may  take  looking  to  the  betterment  of  conditions  attending  mines,  min- 
ing, and  miners. 

The  Toastmaster  then  introduced  Mr.  E.  L.  DeLestry,  of  Min- 
nesota. 

MR.  DE  LESTRY:  Mr.  Chairman  and  Gentlemen:  On  behalf  of 
the  state  of  Minnesota  we  desire  to  express  our  great  appreciation 
for  your  hearty  welcome  to  your  wonderful  city.  Coming  to  Chi- 
cago is  like  coming  to  an  old  home,  at  least  to  me,  for  many 
pleasant  associations  still  linger  in  my  memory  from  the  earlier  years 
of  my  life,  spent  in  this  city.  If  the  North  Star  Stale  has  not  heretofore 
taken  an  active  part  in  the  work  of  the  Mining  Congress  it  is  not  on 
account  of  its  lack  of  mineral  wealth.  Our  state  now  contributes  annually 
twenty-eight  million  tons  of  iron  ore  to  the  markets  of  the  world.  Its 
production  in  magnificent  building  stones  of  great  value  can  handly  be 
estimated.  With  the  splendid  granites  of  St.  Cloud,  which  appear  in 
many  of  our  public  buildings,  the  dolomites  of  Winona,  the  beautiful 
standstones  of  the  Kettle  river,  and  the  famous  lime  stones  abounding 
in  every  direction  we  still  have  vast  areas  of  undeveloped  iron  lands 
open  to  the  energetic  miner.  We  estimate  that  the  supply  of  marketable 
iron  ores  of  Minnesota  will  yield  for  a  century  to  come. 

Aside  from  our  local  resources  many  thousands  of  dollars  of 
Minnesota  capital  have  gone  into  the  developing  of  mines  of  the  far 
west  and  still  continue  to  assist  in  the  further  development  of  the 
country's  greatest  industry,  which  we  here  represent.  Only  the  near- 
sighted parsimony  of  our  legislature  has  so  far  kept  the  state  from 
having  a  well  established  department  of  mines  but  the  time  is  surely 
coming  when  such  a  department  will  be  established  in  our  state.  Gov- 
ernor Eberhardt  recommended  it  in  his  last  message  to  the  legislature 
and  the  matter  will  be  kept  fully  alive  in  the  future. 

I  am  firmly  of  the  opinion  that  once  our  citizens,  who  are  in  any 
manner  interested  in  mining  realize  the  great  work  this  Congress  is 
doing,  they  wilt  not  hesitate  to  become  actively  associated  with  us  and 
I  believe  we  can  greet  the  next  annual  convention  at  least  with  a  Twin 
City  section  fully  organized.  The  public  must  be  educated  to  all  great 


34  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

movements  but  I  wish  to  say  in  closing  my  remarks  that  the  news- 
papers of  the  state  are  treating  us  with  utmost  liberality  in  promulgat- 
ing the  news  as  it  pertains  to  our  efforts. 

Again  we  thank  you  for  your  greetings  and  we  already  feel  sure 
that  our  stay  in  your  city  will  be  both  pleasant  and  profitable. 

Whereupon  an  adjournment  was  taken  until  10  o'clock  a.  m.,  Octo- 
ber 25. 

WEDNESDAY,  OCTOBER  25,  1911. 
Morning  Session. 

The  meeting  was  called  to  order  by  Dr.  E.  R.  Buckley,  at  10 
o'clock  a.  m. 

THE  CHAIRMAN:  It  has  been  the  custom,  ladies  and  gentlemen, 
yearly,  for  the  president  to  present  to  the  members  of  the  American 
Mining  Congress  an  annual  address.  This  address  follows  various  lines 
of  instruction,  and  is  a  review  of  the  work  of  the  American  Mining 
Congress.  I  think  that  perhaps  there  is  no  man  associated  with  the 
American  Mining  Congress  who  knows  better  or  more  fully  the  work 
of  this  organization  than  our  present  president.  (Applause.)  Our  presi- 
dent has  been  untiring  in  his  efforts  to  build  up  and  to  make  this  organ- 
ization successful  in  every  way.  He  is  a  man  who  is  in  touch  not  only 
with  the  practical  mining  industry  and  successful  miners  and  operators, 
but  he  is  also  a  man  well  versed  in  the  technology  of  mining.  I  think  we 
have  been  extremely  fortunate  during  the  last  year  in  having  Mr.  John  . 
Dern,  of  Salt  Lake  City,  as  the  president  of  this  American  Mining 
Congress;  not  only  because  of  the  personality  of  Mr.  Dern,  president, 
but  because  he  comes  from  a  city  in  the  west  which  stands  pre-emi- 
nently first  in  this  great  industry.  I  think  that  the -members  of  the 
American  Mining  Congress  owe  to  Mr.  Dern  and  his  people  much  more 
than  a  vote  of  thanks  for  the  interest  that  they  have  shown  in  this 
organization  and  the  help  which  they  have  given  it  in  the  years  past,  and 
so  I  take  great  pleasure  this  morning,  ladies  and  gentlemen,  in  pre- 
senting to  you  our  president,  Mr.  John  Dern,  of  Salt  Lake  City. 

Mr.  Dern's  address  will  be  found  at  page  121  of  this  report. 

THE  CHAIRMAN:  Mr.  President,  I  am  sure  I  express  the  senti- 
ment of  this  meeting  when  I  say  that  we  have  been  most  highly  enter- 
tained by  your  instructive  and  interesting  address.  (Applause.) 

The  next  number  on  the  program  for  this  morning  is  the  report 
of  the  committee  on  workmen's  compensation,  by  Mr.  John  H.  Jones, 
its  chairman. 

SECRETARY  .CALLBREATH:  The  report  of  this  committee  is 
printed  in  the  issue  of  "Fuel,"  which  has  been  distributed,  and  the  read- 
ing of  that  report  will  be  dispensed  with,  with  your  permission. 

The  report   of  the   committee  on  workme'n's   compensation   will   be 
found  at  page  113  of  this  report. 

THE  CHAIRMAN:  This  report  is  to  be  discussed  by  Mr.  C.  O. 
Bartlett,  Cleveland,  Ohio;  Mr.  James  W.  Wardrop,  Pittsburgh,  Pa.,  and 
Mr.  John  Mayer,  Kansas  City,  Mo. 

M'R.  HARRY  S.  JOSEPH,  UTAH:  I  would  like  to  ask  whether 
this  discussion  will  be  limited  to  this  morning's  session. 

THE  CHAIRMAN:  That  will  depend  upon  the  number  of  people 
who  desire  to  discuss  this  report.  If  we  have  sufficient  time  this  morn- 
ing we  will  close  the  discussion  this  morning.  If  the  Congress  desires 
to  have  the  discussion  continued  to  some  future  time  it  is  in  their  hands 
to  postpone  that  discussion. 

MR  JOSEPH:  The  reason  I  bring  this  up,  Mr.  Chairman,  is  that 
all  of  us  have  not  had  the  opportunity  to  see  this  report  that  has  been  so 
ably  prepared,  and  in  this  morning's  issue  of  the  papers  there  is  a  dis- 
patch from  Washington  to  the  effect  that  the  committee  having  in 
charge  a  measure  which  will  probably  include  the  sum  and  substance  of 
this  proposed  workmen's  compensation  measure,  is  working  upon  a 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  35 

measure  to  be  presented  to  Congress,  and  they  invite  suggestions,  and  I 
believe  before  limiting  the  discussion  to  this  morning's  session  that  we 
ought  to  carry  it  through  the  entire  session,  so  that  we  may  all  have 
a  chance  to  study,  not  only  that  measure,  but  also  to  study  the  law 
as  presented  by  this  committee  of  the  Congress. 

THE  CHAIRMAN:  A  motion  will  be  in  order  at  any  time  during 
the  sessions  of  this  congress,  to  take  up  this  discussion  at  a  further 
meeting.  We  will  now  hear  from  Mr.  C.  O.  Bartlett,  of  Cleveland,  Ohio. 

MR.  BARTLETT:  Mr.  Chairman  and  Ladies  and  Gentlemen  of 
the  American  Mining  Congress:  To  begin  with,  I  wish  to  say 
a  word  or  two  about  the  paper  which  has  just  been  read  by 
our  worthy  president.  I  assure  you  that  it  makes  me  feel  good 
to  hear  such  a  paper.  It  was  my  fortune  to' meet  with  this  convention 
some  years  ago,  at  Deadwood,  S.  D.  It  was  also  my  fortune  to  say  at 
that  convention  that  it  was  necessary  to  include  the  coal  industry  in  the 
work  of  the  American  Mining  Congress.  At  that  session  I  think  we 
only  .had  two  representatives  of  the  coal  men  there.  I  said  at  that  time 
that  other  things  must  be  considered  if  we  would  make  a  success  of 
this  Congress.  I  remember  in  particular  of  some  one  speaking  of  pro- 
ducing $7,000,000  worth  of  gold  in  the  great  homestead  mines  in  Lead, 
S.  D.,  and  it  occurred  to  me  then  that  they  were  producing  more  than 
that  value  in  granite  down  in  the  little  state  of  Vermont;  and  in  our 
state  of  Ohio  we  produced  last  year  $21,000,000  worth  of  clay  products, 
and  when  the  president  speaks  of  these  products  it  makes  me  feel  good. 
It  is  what  we  ought  to  do.  It  has  been  a  long,  hard  fight  to  put  this 
American  Mining  Congress  on  its  present  footing,  and  we  are  much 
indebted  to  such  men  as  Dr.  Buckley  and  Dr.  Holmes  and  Mr.  Callbreath 
and  Mr.  Richards,  for  the  work  they  have  done.  To  illustrate,  at  that 
time  hardly  a  single  paper  was  supporting  this  institution.  I  think  the 
Mining  World  was  about  the  only  one  represented  at  that  Congress. 
Now  we  are  supported  by  every  mining  paper  in  the  United  States.  The 
future  is  great  for  us. 

Mr.  Bartlett's  paper  will  be  found  at  page  191  of  this  report. 

THE  CHAIRMAN:  This  address  will  be  followed  by  one  on  the 
same  subiect  by  Mr.  James  W.  Wardrop,  of  Pittsburgh,  Pa. 

MR.  WARDROP:  Mr.  President  and  Ladies  and  Gentlemen:  I 
might  preface  my  remarks  by  saying  that  I  expect  to  present  the  argu- 
ment of  Mr.  John  H.  Jones,  the  chairman  of  the  committee  that  produced 
this  compensation  law,  now  before  you,  or  to  give  you  from  the  chair- 
man of  that  committee  the  views  of  the  committee  and  the  basis  upon 
which  it  worked  to  present  what  you  have  now  in  print,  and  which  you 
expect  to  discuss. 

Mr.  Wardrop  then  read  Mr.  Jones'  paper,  which  will  be  found  at 
page  180  of  this  report. 

The  Chairman  announced  that  a  brief  discussion  by  Mr.  John  Mayer 
would  be  given  the  ficst  thing  in  the  afternoon,  and  after  some  announce- 
ments by  the  Secretary  an  adjournment  was  taken  until  2  o'clock  p.  m. 

WEDNESDAY,  OCTOBER  25,  1911. 
Afternoon   Session. 

The  meeting  was  called  to  order  by  the  President. 

The  Secretary  read  resolutions  Nos.  1,  2,  3,  4,  5  and  6a  as  follows: 

Resolution  No.   1,  Introduced  by  Harry  S.  Joseph,  Utah. 

Whereas,  There  exists  in  the  Rocky  Mountain  states  many 
mining  properties  containing  developed  low  grade  ore  deposits  and 
vast  dumps  containing  metal  bearing  ores  not  susceptible  by  present 
known  methods  of  treatment  whereby  the  precious  metals  can  be 
economically  and  profitably  extracted;  and 

Whereas,  It  should  be  incumbent  upon  the  general  government 
to  lend  all  possible  aid  to  the  end  that  conservation  in  its  true  mean- 


36  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

ing  and  sense,  viz.:  the  prevention  of  waste  of  natural  resources  may 
be  practically  carried  out;  and 

Whereas,  the  extraction  of  metals  from  apparent  worthless 
ores  fulfills  the  above  doctrine  in  part;  and 

Whereas,  It  is  now  a  settled  fact  that  Salt  Lake  City,  Utah,  is 
the  center  of  the  mining  activities  of  the  West, — 

Resolved,  That  it  be  the  sense  of  The  American  Mining  Con- 
gress in  convention  assembled,  that  the  President  and  Congress  of 
the  United  States  be  and  are  hereby  memorialized  to  enact  such 
legislation  as  shall  establish  under  the  auspices,  direction  and  author- 
ity of  the  United  States  Bureau  of  Mines  at  Salt  Lake  City,  a 
metallurgical,  experimental  or  ore  testing  station  for  the  purpose  of 
devising  methods  to  extract  the  metallic  values  from  such  low-grade 
ore  and  furnish  the  mining  world  with  the  results  of  such  experi- 
mentation, and  appropriate  $250,000  for  such  purpose; 

Resolved  further,  That  the  officers  of  the  American  Mining 
Congress  draft  a  suitable  bill  embodying  the  above;  that  copies  of 
same,  together  with  this  resolution,  be  forwarded  to  the  President 
of  the  United  States,  and  to  every  senator  and  representative,  and 
that  all  honorable  and  energetic  means  be  used  to  the  end  that  such 
a  bill  may  become  a  law. 

Resolution    No.    2,   Introduced    by    the    Kanawha    Coal    Operators' 

Association. 

Whereas,  The  President  of  this  United  States,  in  his  address 
before  the  conservation  congress  at  St.  Paul,  Minn.,  and  on  other 
occasions,  so  earnestly  and  properly  insisted  upon  speakers  and 
others  confining  their  remarks  to  concrete  suggestions  or  plans  by 
which  more  might  be  accomplished  than  had  been  done  to  conserve 
our  resources;  and, 

Whereas,  The  conservation  of  bituminous  coal  is  one  of  great 
importance  to  this  nation;  and 

Whereas,  Unlike  other  manufactured  products  the  condition 
under  which  the  necessity  is  marketed  prevents  the  producer  from 
deriving  a  sufficient  profit  to  enable  him  to  conserve  the  coal  in  the 
ground  and  the  installation  of  the  most  modern  appliances  by  which 
a  far  greater  tonnage  than  is  now  produced  could  be  mined  from 
each  acre  of  coal  area  instead  of  leaving  a  large  portion  of  it  in  the 
ground  in  such  shape  that  it  can  never  be  gotten  out;  and, 

Whereas,  Notwithstanding  the  many  statements  sent  broadcast 
from  time  to  time  that  the  producers  of  bituminous  coal  are  charg- 
ing an  exorbitant  price  for  it,  said  statements  being  made  by  men 
of  prominence  and  well  informed  on  most  subjects  show  that  they 
undertake  to  discuss  a  most  important  subject  which  they  do  not 
understand,  and  a  subject  concerning  which  they  could  easily  obtain 
accurate,  reliable  and  exhaustive  statistics  by  calling  on  the  heads 
of  the  mining  bureaus  of  our  various  coal  producing  states,  which 
statistics  would  correctly  show  that  the  coal  from  most  of  our  states 
having  the  greatest  deposits  of  the  highest  grade  bituminous  coal, 
and  from  which  the  greatest  tonnage  is  now  being  produced,  is  sold 
by  the  producer  at  a  price  that  nets  him  an  average  annual  profit 
of  less  than  ten  cents  a  ton,  and  in  many  cases  and  for  long  periods 
of  time  at  a  price  below  actual  cost  of  production,  notwithstanding 
the  fact  that  the  production  of  coal  is  one  of  the  most  hazardous 
and  dangerous  enterprises  in  which  funds  can  be  invested  or  labor 
be  employed;  and, 

Whereas,  The  larger  as  well  as  the  smaller  producer  of  bitumi- 
nous coal  has  for  years  been  forced  to  market  his  product  at  an 
actual  loss  or  a  profit  which  is  insignificant  when  compared  with 
the  nature  of  the  investment  and  the  hazard  surrounding  it;  and, 

Whereas,  This  deplorable  condition  of  the  coal  trade  is  largely 
the  result  of  the  producers  of  coal  being  unwilling  to  do  what  might 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  37 

be  technically  construed  as  a  violation  of  the  Sherman  anti-trust  law; 
be  it,  therefore, 

Resolved,  That  it  is  the  sense  of  this  association  that  the 
Sherman  anti-trust  law  should  be  construed  as  to  admit  of  such 
understandings  and  co-operation  between  the  producers  of  bitumi- 
nous coal  as  would  admit  of  the  marketing  of  tliat  product  at  a 
reasonable  profit  to  the  producer  to  the  end  that  he  may  receive  a 
fair  return  on  his  investment,  and  at  the  same  time  conserve  the 
coal  supply  in  the  ground;  and  be  it  further 

Resolved,  That  a  copy  of  this  resolution  and  its  preamble  be 
forwarded  to  the  American  Mining  Congress,  which  convenes  at 
Chicago,  111.,  October  24,  1911,  and  that  Congress  be  requested  to 
pass  it,  and  request  each  of  its  members  to  forward  a  copy  to  his 
representative  in  the  Congress  of  the  United  States. 

Resolution  No.  3,  Introduced  by  the  Valdez  Section  of  the  American 
Mining  Congress. 

Resolved,  That  the  American  Mining  Congress  supports  the 
unanimous  voice  of  Alaska  in  opposing  the  leasing  of  Alaska  coal 
lands.  Government  operation  would  be  preferable  because  it  would 
give  the  government  absolute  control.  Leases  could  be  made  only  to 
great  corporations  under  terms  that  would  give  them  monopolistic 
advantages.  Otherwise  they  would  not  accept  a  lease. 

Resolved,  That  the  unanimous  demand  ot  Alaskans  for  the 
abolition  of  forest  reserves  in  the  territory  ought  to  be  granted. 
These  segregations  are  a  useless  expense  to  the  government,  an 
annoyance  and  handicap  to  residents  who  are  trying  to  develop  the 
resources  of  the  territory,  and  have  never  saved  a  dollar's  worth  of 
timber  or  water  from  monopoly  or  waste  because  the  annual  produc- 
tion of  both  in  the  forest  reserves  many  times  exceeds  the  con- 
sumption. 

Resolution  No.  4,  Introduced  by  James  Fletcher,  Illinois. 

Whereas,  The  present  scale  of  wages  expires  on  the  first  day  of 
April,  1912,  and  a  new  scale  must  be  adopted  by  the  miners  and 
operators;  and, 

Whereas,  Experience  has  shown  us  that  it  is  sometimes  very 
difficult  for  the  operators  and  miners  to  agree  on  a  scale;  therefore 
be  it 

Resolved,  That  this  Congress  recommend  that  in  case  of  a 
disagreement  between  the  operators  and  miners  on  a  just  and  equit- 
able scale,  the  matter  shall  be  settled  by  a  Board  of  Arbitration 
consisting  of  three  members  of  each  state,  one  to  be  appointed  by 
the  miners'  organization  and  one  by  the  operators  and  a  third  to  be 
agreed  upon  by  these  two;  provided  the  two  members  thus  appointed 
cannot  agree  on  the  third  member,  said  member  shall  be  appointed 
by  the  President  of  the  United  States. 

Resolution  No.  5,  Introduced  by  B.  W.  Goodsell,  Illinois. 

Resolved,  That  the  American  Mining  Congress  is  in  hearty 
sympathy  and  accord  with  the  efforts  being  made  by  the  sixty  mil- 
lions of  people  tributary  to  the  great  valley  of  the  Mississippi  River 
through  the  "Lakes  to  the  Gulf  Deep  Waterway  Association"  to  de- 
mand from  the  United  States  Government  through  its  Congress  to 
lend  every  possible  aid  towards  securing  a  .fourteen-foot  channel 
between  the  Great  Lakes  and  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  through  the  Illinois 
and  Mississippi  rivers,  and  thus  save  to  our  people  not  only  a  suf- 
ficient amount  in  transportation  charges  every  three  years  to  cover 
the  entire  expense,  but  also  to  regulate  freight  rates  to  the  Atlantic 
seaboard -which  are  now  seven  times  greater  than  through  this  nat- 
ural outlet  from  the  Great  Lakes  to  New  Orleans  when  accomplished. 
All  mining  interests  between  the  state  of  Ohio  on  the  east  and  Cali- 
fornia on  the  west  will  be  equally  benefited  with  our  great  agricul- 


38  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

tural  interests  by  this  connecting  link  between  the  great  west  and 
the  Panama  Canal,  and  eastern  markets  along  the  Atlantic  coast. 

Resolution  No.  6,  Introduced  by  Z.  Taylor  Vinson,  West  Virginia. 

Resolved,  That  the  committee  on  resolutions  be  and  it  is  here- 
by requested  to  report  the  advisability  of  requesting  Congress  to 
enact  such  legislation  as  will  provide  a  suitable  method  of  providing 
for  an  equitable  workingmen's  compensation  for  injuries  received, 
and  a  modification  of  the  Sherman  anti-trust  act  so  as  to  permit 
reasonable  trade  agreements  between  those  engaged  in  the  mining 
industry. 

Resolution  No.  6a,  Introduced  by  E.  T.  Bent,  Illinois. 

Resolved,  That  the  American  Mining  Congress  hereby  de- 
clares in  favor  of  the  enactment  of  workmen's  compensation  laws 
in  the  several  states;  that  such  laws  should  become  the  sole  remedy 
for  those  coming  under  its  provisions;  that  they  should  either  be 
compulsory  upon  both  the  employer  and  the  workman,  or  else  op- 
tional with  both;  that  if  optional,  the  workman  must  elect  within  30 
days  after  securing  employment  and  before  he  is  injured  or  the 
compensation  act  applies;  that  there  should  be  a  permanent  state 
board  to  administer  the  act;  that  the  advisability  of  inserting  the 
state  insurance  and  state  industry  features  be  left  open  for  local 
determination;  that  if  said  features  are  not  inserted  mutual  insur- 
ance by  industries  be  permitted  by  the  act  under  proper  regulations; 
and  that  the  pension  payments  instead  of  lump  sums  payments  be 
required,  with  "adequate  means  for  commuting  to  a  lump  sum  on  a 
proper  showing  either  for  the  purchase  of  an  annuity  or  for  payment 
to  the  said  state  board  for  the  purpose  of  creating  an  annuity  fund. 
THE  PRESIDENT:  We  will  proceed  with  the  regular  program, 
and  first  we  will  have  a  few  remarks  by  Mr.  John  Mayer,  Kansas  City, 
Mo.,  on  workmen's  compensation. 

MR.  MAYER:  Workman's  compensation  is  comparatively  a  new 
thought  out  in  the  Southwest,  yet  we  have  had  to  meet  it  in  one  of  our 
states,  Kansas,  and  will  probably  have  to  meet  it  in  the  other  three 
states  covered  by  our  association. 

The  reasons  advanced  for  this  kind  of  legislation  are  many  and  the 
principal  ones  you  are  familiar  with.  Summed  up  it  is  the  idea  of  mak- 
ing the  industry  pay  for '  everything  that  goes  to  make  it  a  going  con- 
cern. The  purchase  of  machinery  and  the  repairs  thereto,  the  loss  in. 
total  if  destroyed  by  fire  or  other  accidents,  are  now  made  a  fixed  charge 
and  the  claim  is  advanced  that  so  also  should  there  be  made  such  a 
charge  for  the  loss  of  life  or  the  crippling  of  employes,  as  they  are 
necessary  to  keep  your  institution  a  going  concern.  Society  should  bear 
the  burden  by  making  the  results  of  accidents  an  overhead  or  fixed 
charge  against  the  industry  whether  accidents  occur  to  machinery  or 
men,  and  we  have  a  more  advanced  idea  that  if  this  could  be  equitably 
done  that  the  present  policy  of  leaving  employes  that  have  been  totally 
or  partially  disabled  or  their  dependents  in  case  of  death,  a  charge  upon 
the  public,  will  in  a  measure  be  done  away  with;  they  will  be  able  to 
care  for  themselves  and  thereby  lessen  the  load  of  public  charities  which 
is  growing. 

The  thought  is  beautiful,  but  we  must  remember  that  human  nature 
is  pretty  generally  alike  the  world  over,  and  when  we  make  legislation, 
the  selfishness  and  interest  of  all  should  be  carefully  considered.  Com- 
pensation for  accidents  is  likely  to  become  a  reward  for  carelessness. 
An  industry  may  become  an  industrial  pension  bureau,  and  for  these  and 
other  reasons  it  is  well  to  consider  a  few  of  the  important  points  that 
should  be  considered  in  such  legislation. 

We  believe  that  such  a  law  should  be  optional.  We  believe  that 
where  the  employer  comes  under  the  compensation  law  of  a  state  that 
the  liability  laws,  if  any  there  be,  in  that  state  should  be  modified  so  that 
the  employer  could  have  at  least  the  common  law  defense  against  the 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  39 

employe  that  refuses  to  come  under  the  compensation  law.  The  em- 
ploye should  not  have  two  methods  of  procedure  against  the  employer. 
The  employers'  liability  should  be  the  compensation  provided  in  the  law 
and  should  not  be  any  more,  under  any  circumstances. 

We  hold  that  the  fund  created  to  care  for  these  accidents  should  be 
contributed  to  by  both  employer  and  employe  in  a  proportion  to  be  found 
just  and  equitable,  and  this  for  the  reason  that  the  fund  then  will  be 
more  honestly  guarded.  When  both  parties  to  the  fund  are  paying  for 
its  maintenance  they  will  jointly  see  that  it  is  not  plundered. 

There  may  be  reasons  for  different  measures  of  compensation  in 
the  different  states  owing  to  different  wages  paid  or  different  physical 
conditions,  but  we  should  try  and  have  any  measure  recommended  by 
this  Congress  as  general  as  it  is  possible  to  make  it.  As  to  the  rules  for 
obtaining  the  measure  of  compensation,  the  creation  of  the  fund  from 
which  to  pay  the  compensation  and  the  rules  regulating  the  handling 
and  safeguarding  the  interests  of  both  parties,  and  so  far  as  the  coal 
mining  industry  is  concerned  the  state  system  of  inspection,  if  a  com- 
mon fund  is  created,  they  should  be  so  thorough  and  impartial  that  the 
careful  employer  would  not  be  called  upon  to  help  pay  for  the  careless- 
ness of  some  other  employer.  This  brings  us  to  the  idea  that  we  have  and 
that  is  that  each  employer  should  pay  for  his  own  accidents.  This  may 
be  argued  against  by  some  on  the  ground  that  the  employe's  may  not  be 
able  to  collect  what  is  due  them  from  some  employers  and  thereby  lose, 
but  on  the  other  hand  these  are  the  class  of  employers  that  will  make 
the  burden  of  keeping  up  a  common  fund  so  great  on  the  other  employ- 
ers that  it  may  be  necessary  for  them  to  refuse  to  come  under  the  com- 
pensation act  and  then  liability  laws  will  surely  follow. 

The  measure  of  compensation  should  be  adequate,  but  at  the  be- 
ginning should  be  the  minimum,  as  each  succeeding  legislature  will  see 
that  it  is  raised  if  at  all  possible. 

Above  all,  this  class  of  legislation  should  be  as  nearly  uniform  as 
it  is  possible  to  make  it  in  all  the  states,  to  obviate  a  certain  class  of 
business  in  one  state  working  under  a  much  different  law,  and  thereby  a 
different  fixed  charge  for  the  production  of  its  commodities,  to  come 
in  competition  with  a  similar  industry  in  an  adjoining  state. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  An  opportunity  will  now  be  given  to  any  one 
to  discuss  this  question. 

MR.  Z.  TAYLOR  VINSON,  West  Virginia:  Mr.  President  and 
Gentlemen  of  the  Congress:  I  think  there  are  three  or  four  tremendous 
problems  that  have  been  presented  by  the  previous  speakers  for  your  con- 
sideration at  this  meeting.  One  of  these  problems  is  the  matter  of  a  proper 
workingmen's  compensation  law.  Another  matter -which  has  been  par- 
ticularly pointed  out  is  how  best  to  secure  Congressional  action  that  will 
modify  or  amend  the  Sherman  anti-trust  law  so  as  to  relieve  us  from 
the  cruelty  of  its  operation.  The  operation  of  the  anti-trust  law  and 
its  effect  upon  the  coal  industry  and  the  best  methods  of  changing  or 
modifying  that  law  is  as  important  for  us  to  consider  here  and  now  as 
the  workingmen's  compensation  act. 

My  excuse  for  saying  anything  at  this  time  is  due  to  the  fact  that 
I  have  been  requested  to  prepare  a  bill  for  the  consideration  of  Congress 
at  its  next  December  session,  having  for  its  purpose  the  creation  of  a 
National  Mining  Commission,  vested  with  power  and  authority  to  (1) 
prescribe  rules  and  regulations  for  mining  coal  that  will  be  real  conserva- 
tion of  that  great  natural  resource;  (2)  to  prescribe  rules  and  regulations 
to  prevent  mine  accidents  and  protect  the  health  of  miners;  (3)  to  ad- 
minister the  provisions  of  a  workingmen's  compensation  law  provided 
for  in  the  bill;  (4)  and  to  pass  upon  and  approve  or  condemn  trade 
agreements  between  coal  producers,  wherein  such  agreements  would 
lessen  or  limit  to  some  extent  the  acute  competition  that  now  prvails 
between  them. 

After  consulting  with  those  whom  I  knew  could  give  me  valuable 
suggestions  in  getting  the  best  opinions  and  judgment  of  men  having 
long  experience  in  the  coal  mining  industry,  I  am  constrained  to  believe 


40  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

that  the  creation  of  a  Natonal  Mining  Commission  to  regulate  the  coal 
mining  industry  along  the  lines  of  the  Interstate  Commerce  Commission, 
and  one  that  will  have  universal  and  complete  jurisdiction  over  the  min- 
ing business  throughout  the  United  States  will  solve,  in  the  main,  all 
these  problems. 

At  a  former  meeting  of  this  Congress  a  committee  was  appointed  to 
investigate  and  prepare  a  bill  for  the  various  state  legislatures  to  adopt, 
having  for  its  purpose  the  creation  of  a  workmen's  compensation  law. 
This  committee  has  discharged  its  duty  and  made  its  report,  filing  there- 
with a  copy  of  the  bill  it  proposes  for  the  various  legislatures  to  enact 
into  law. 

From  the  preceding  discussions  and  expressions  of  opinions  it  is 
very  evident  that  the  success  of  any  workmen's  compensation  law  as 
applied  to  the  coal  mining  industry  must  be  based  upon  the  principle  of 
uniformity  throughout  the  various  states.  I  do  not  beli-eve  it  is  possible 
in  the  nature  of  things  to  secure  anything  like  uniform  legislation  by  the 
legislatures  of  our  states.  We  have  heard  these  discussions  and  they, 
have  all  been  exceedingly  able,  offering  good  suggestions,  indeed,  but  it 
seems  to  me  that  if  the  interest  of  the  coal  mining  industry  as  well  as  the 
interest  of  the  public  is  to  be  advanced,  then  it  is  necessary  to  get  as  far 
away  as  possible  from  state  control  of  that  industry. 

A  DELEGATE:    Is  National  control  any  better? 

MR.  VINSON:  Yes,  infinitely.  Assuming  that  the  Congress  has 
jurisdiction  to  enact  legislation  of  this  kind  or  purpose,  let  us  see  what 
it  means.  The  suggestions  embodied  in  the  bill  which  I  have  prepared 
contemplate  that  there  will  be  paid  into  the  treasury  of  the  commission 
by  the  coal  operator  one  cent  per  ton  on  the  coal  mined,  and  one  per 
cent  to  be  deducted  from  the  pay  roll  of  the  employes.  That  fund,  based 
upon  last  year's  production,  would  amount  in  round  numbers  to  $8,000,- 
000,  to  be  known  as  the  Miner's  Relief  Fund,  and  as  soon  as  a  man  was 
injured  at  the  mine  he  would  be  placed  immediately  under  the  jurisdic- 
tion of  the  local  physician,  as  all  mines  have  local  physicians.  Let  me 
say,  however,  at  this  point,  that  the  commission  would  be  composed  of 
men  who  are  skilled  in  the  coal  mining  industry,  from  the  mining  to  the 
selling  of  it,  so  that  their  knowledge  would  be  complete.  They  would 
be  selected  from  different  sections  of  the  country  and  each  one  would 
be  an  expert  in  that  business. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  The  Chair  regrets  very  much  to  cut  off  such 
an  interesting  discussion,  but  under  the  rule  I  am  compelled  to  do  it. 

MR.  S.  A.  TAYLOR,  Pennsylvania:  Mr.  Chairman,  I  move  that  the 
time  be  extended  to  Mr.  Vinson  to  amplify  his  argument.  I  know 
he  is  able  to  do  it  and  it  would  be  of  very  much  more  interest  than 
general  discussion. 

Motion  seconded  and  carried. 

MR.  VINSON  (Continuing):  I  want  to  thank  you  one  and  all  for 
this  courtesy,  and  promise  you  that  I  will  be  as  brief  as  possible.  To 
illustrate,  a  man  is  hurt;  he  is  then  put  under  the  immediate  care  of  the 
local  physician,  and  the  physician  from  the  commission,  which  would  be 
a  federal  employe  located  somewhere  in  the  district,  would  go  immedi- 
ately and  take  charge,  acting  together  with  the  local  doctor.  While  the 
injured  man  continued  to  be  incapacitated  his  wages  would  go  on  and 
would  be  paid  out  of  the  Miner's  Relief  Fund.  After  he  has  recovered, 
the  commission  would  cause  a  full  investigation  and  report  to  be  made  of 
the  extent  and  permanency  of  the  injury  and  would  pay  to  him  such 
sum  as  would  be  a  reasonable  compensation  for  any  permanent  disability 
which  he  had  suffered.  This  plan  of  compensation  I  think  is  a  great 
advantage  .over  the  employer's  liability  laws,  because  in  the  enforcement 
of  the  liability  laws  it  was  very  aptly  stated  this  morning  that  it  always 
means  fight  and  long  and  expensive  litigation  in  the  courts.  Under  acci- 
dent insurance  laws  the  reports  and  statistics  show  us  that  for  every 
dollar  paid  into  the  insurance  fund  it  requires  sixty  cents  to  pay  the  cost, 
expense  and  profits  of  administering  that  fund,"  and  the  man  who  is 
entitled  to  compensation  receives  only  forty  cents  on  every  dollar  paid 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  41 

in  for  his  benefit.  By  the  plan  proposed,  the  man  who  is  hurt  begins  to 
receive  his  compensation  immediately,  and  if  he  recovers  and  is  disabled 
there  will  be  an  allowance  made  to  him  that  is  just  and  equitable,  to  be 
ascertained  and  fixed  by  men  who  have  full  knowledge  of  the  conditions 
and  who  have  no  motive  to  do  anything  more  than  fair  and  exact  justice 
to  that  man.  For  these  reasons  I  think  'the  National  Commission  is 
greatly  to  be  preferred  over  any  other  method  of  providing  a  just  com- 
pensation for  accidents  and  would  certainly  be  superior  to  state  super- 
vision. In  West  Virginia — and  no  doubt  the  conditions  are  similar  in 
other  states — it  would  be  well  nigh  impossible  to  have  so  large  a  fund 
of  money  administered  properly  and  keep  it  out  of  politics.  It  is  more 
than  likely,  if  not  reasonably  certain,  that  the  distribution  of  such  a 
fund  would  be  controlled  by  the  political  machine,  to  the  detriment  of 
the  men  who  are  justly  entitled  to  it.  This  plan  would  operate  to  give 
the  injured  workman  everything  he  is  entitled  to,  and  give  it  to  him 
at  once,  without  court  or  jury  or  any  legal  proceeding,  and  even  without 
a  demand,  and  the  commission  could  give  it  to  him  in  such  sums  and 
in  such  manner  as  would  best  suit. his  needs  and  wants.  If  he  was  the 
kind  of  man  that  would  probably  take  care  of  his  money  and  invest  it  in 
such  a  way  as  to  secure  to  himself  and  those  dependent  upon  him  the  full 
benefits  of  it.  the  commission  would  probably  pay  ft  all  to  him  at  once; 
on  the  other  hand,  they  would  pay  it  out  to  him  or  his  family  in  monthly 
or  weekly  allowances,  as  the  best  interest  of  the  beneficiaries  might  de- 
mand. Of  course  in  the  event  of  his  death,  those  dependent  upon  him 
would  be  cared  for  and  receive  the  fund  in  the  same  manner. 

The  idea  is  entertained  by  some  that  the  employer  should  furnish 
and  provide  the  whole  of  the  relief  fund.  I  believe  that  better  results 
can  be  obtained  if  the  employes  contribute  something  to  this  fund,  say, 
on  the  basis  of  one  per  cent  of  their  wages.  This  would  amount,  gener- 
ally speaking,  to  forty  or  fifty  cents  per  month,  and  the  employes  would 
not  feel  it  as  a  charge  upon  them,  and  yet  it  would  relieve  their  minds 
from  the  feeling  that  they  were  to  some  extent  objects  of  charity.  If  the 
party  injured  had  contributed  to  the  fund  out  of  his  own  means,  he 
would  feel,  and  justly  feel,  that  he  was  entitled  to  this  compensation  as 
a  matter  of  right,  and  it  would  remove  the  idea  of  a  charity  or  pension. 

For  the  reason  that  the  compensation  would  be  just,  and  cover  the 
extent  of  the  injury  so  far  as  money  can  compensate  for  such  injuries 
and  the  payment  of  it  would  be  both  immediate  and  certain,  without 
charge  or  cost  or  delay  of  any  character,  it  seems  to  me  that  this  plan 
has  a  great  advantage  over  any  possible  state  action  that  we  may  hope 
for;  because,  do  the  best  we  can  and  use  our  best  efforts  to  have  a  uni- 
form bill  adopted  by  the  legislatures  of  the  various  states,  we  could  not 
hope  to  accomplish  this  under  eight  or  ten  years'  time,  and  then  such 
legislation  would  not  be  uniform.  If  this  fund  is  to  be  provided  by  a 
method  that  is  uniform  throughout  all  the  states,  it  seems  to  me  that  a 
National  law  is  the  only  possible  way  to  achieve  that  result.  Then  such 
payments  will,  of  course,  in  the  first  instance,  be  made  by  both  employer 
and  employe,  but  it  can  be  charged  to  and  borne  by  the  industry  itself. 
It  will  not  have  to  come  from  the  employer  alone,  nor  from  the  employe, 
but  it  can  and  will  go  into  the  cost  of  production  and  the  consumer 
must  ultimately  pay  it,  and  this  is  a  burden  that  the  consumer  ought  to 
bear.  If  we  should  have  a  workmen's  compensation  law  in  West  Vir- 
ginia, and  you  do  not  have  it  in  Pennsylvania  or  Illinois,  or  other  coal 
producing  states,  then  obviously  the  coal  operators  of  West  Virginia  will 
have  to  bear  that  burden  alone,  and  it  will  be  impossible  under  competi- 
tive market  conditions  to  bring  about  any  uniformity  unless  all  the  states 
adopt  substantially  the  same  plan,  but  if  it  exists  in  practically  ihe  same 
degree  throughout  the  whole  country,  then  the  burden  would  be  borne 
by  all  in  the  first  instance  and  ultimately  refunded  by  the  consumer. 

A  gentleman  pointed  out  this  morning  the  fact  that  when  you  wear 
out  your  machinery,  tools  and  other  implements  used  in  the  production 
of  coal,  the  depreciation  or  loss  is  charged  to  the  cost  of  production. 
Now,  when  we  wear  out  human  life  and  limbs  in  this  industry,  simple 


42  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

justice  demands  that  such  loss  should  be  charged  to  the  cost  of  produc- 
ing this  commodity  and  should  be  paid  ultimately  by  the  consumer. 

Let  us  consider  for  a  moment,  if  you  will  pardon  me,  the  operation 
of  the  Sherman  anti-trust  law  upon  the  coal  mining  industry,  and  par- 
ticularly in  this  connection  dp  I  desire  your  suggestions  and  your  assist- 
ance, for,  not  only  are  we  as  coal  mining  men  interested  in  having  laws 
that  will  not  depress  our  industrial  enterprises,  but  the  public  at  large  is 
vitally  concerned  in  securing  and  maintaining  that  freedom  of  trade  which 
is  consistent  with  the  public  welfare.  In  West  Virginia  the  conditions  are 
such  that  neighbors  and  friends  engaged  in  mining  in  the  same  neighbor- 
hood and  on  the  same  seam  of  coal  are  such  competitors  in  the  market 
for  the  sale  of  their  product  that  whether  they  will  or  no,  they  are 
absolutely  destroying  each  other  year  by  year  and  day  by  day  All  right 
thinking  men  must  conclude  that  that  condition  ought  not  to  prevail  in 
any  industry,  but  I  assume  that  the  same  conditions  do,  as  a  matter  of 
fact,  prevail  in  other  states.  I  believe  you  will  all  agree  with  me  that 
if  the  Sherman  anti-trust  law  is  carried  out  and  administered  as  it  is 
written,  it  will  bankrupt  90  per  cent  of  the  industrial  enterprises  in  this 
country.  The  only  reason  that  we  have  today  for  enjoying  the  industrial 
and  commercial  prominence  that  we  do  is  due  entirely  to  the  fact  that 
the  department  of  justice  has  been  unable  to  execute  the  law,  owing  to 
the  magnitude  of  the  undertaking.  The  operation  of  that  law  naturally 
and  necessarily  if  enforced  means  the  "survival  of  the  fittest."  The  small 
mine  with  an  annual  production  of  100,000  tons  located  along  side  the 
large  company  that  produces  2,000,000  or  3,000,000  tons  can  not  sell  or 
dispose  of  its  coal  for  less  than  10  cents  a  ton;  he  cannot  produce  it 
within  eight  or  ten  cents  a  ton  as  cheaply  as  the  larger  concern,  and,  as 
a  consequence,  the  2,000,000  ton  production  goes  into  the  market  in  com- 
petition with  the  100,000  ton  production,  having  advantage  of  \2l/>  to  15 
cents  a  ton  in  a  lesser  cost  of  production. 

If  we  have  a  continuation  of  the  Sherman  anti-trust  law  operating 
and  driving  the  small  concern  and  the  big  companies  into  competition 
and  enforcing  that  competition  all  the  time,  the  result  is  that  the  little 
man  must  go  out  of  business,  although  there  is  no  unfair  or  illegal  meth- 
ods of  competition  practiced  by  the  larger  concern.  The  big  producer 
has  the  ability  to  secure  large  contracts  at  advance  prices.  He  possesses 
in  many  instances  machinery,  cars,  docks,  depots,  boats  and  storage 
plants  that  are  denied  to  its  smaller  competitors.  The  big  concern  elimi- 
nates the  middle-man,  his  expenses  and  profits,  and  such  a  continual  and 
forced  competition,  where  the  struggle  is  so  unequal,  must  ultimately 
drive  the  little  producer  out  of  business. 

I  think  you  will  quite  agree  with  me  that  something  must  be  done 
to  save  the  "small  producer  from  destruction,  and  I  have  been  unable  to 
think  of  anything  better  than  the  establishment  of  the  National  Commis- 
sion about  which  I  have  been  talking.  This  commission  would  have  the 
power,  and  it  would  be  its  duty  to  ratify  and  approve  any  reasonable 
contract  or  agreement  between  the  smaller  producer  and  the  larger  one 
that  would  eliminate  the  cost  of  sales  and  introduce  greater  economics  in 
production.  Or,  if  he  desired  to  sell  or  lease  his  plant  to  the  larger  con- 
cern, the  commission  could  grant  him  the  privilege  of  doing  so,  without 
being  subject  to  indictment  and  fines  or  imprisonment.  But  as  the  law 
stands  today,  if  he  were  to  undertake  the  execution  of  a  plan  whereby  the 
smaller  plant  should  desire  to  enter  into  trade  agreements  with  the 
larger  one,  the  lawyers  in  the  case  would  tell  him  that  he  is  in  great 
danger  of  indictment  and  ultimately  of  serving  a  sentence  in  jail. 

If  this  commission  of  expert  coal  men  had  jurisdiction  of  these  mat- 
ters and  could  administer  the  fund  raised  for  the  compensation  of  in- 
jured miners,  it  then  ought  to  go  further;  it  ought  to  have  the  power 
to  prescribe  the  rules  and  regulations  for  the  safe  mining  of  coal.  They 
could  prescribe  such  rules  much  more  intelligently  than  any  legislation 
could  possibly  do  it.  You  can  select  from  this  audience  five  men  that 
would  be  infinitely  better  qualified  to  say  how  your  mines  in  Illinois 
shall  be  served,  how  much  air  should  be  provided  in  this  one  and  what 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  43 

should  be  done  to  that  one,  than  would  be  possible  for  your  legislature. 
If  this  industry  can  be  administered  by  the  wisest,  most  experienced  and 
ablest  men  connected  therewith,  then  we  may  expect  the  best  possible 
results;  otherwise,  I  do  not  believe  that  we  will  be  satisfied,  or  rather,  I 
might  say,  our  efforts  here  will  not  be  as  successful  and  will  not  help  the 
industry  as  a  whole  over -all  the  country  nearly  as  much  as  if  we  had  it 
under  one  general  governing  power,  composed  of  men  of  your  own  kind. 
MR.  E.  M.  DELAVERGNE,  Colorado:   You  did  not  state,  I  believe, 
who  would  pay  the  commission  for  the  physician  in  the  case. 
MR.  VINSON:   That  would  be  a  government  expense. 
MR.   DE  LAVERGNE:      You    spoke    of    competition    cutting    the 
throats  of  these  producers.     You  did  not  suggest  any  regulation  that 
would  prevent  the  producers  cutting  the  throats  of  the  consumers. 

MR.  VINSON:  The  check  on  that  would  be  in  the  hands  of  the 
commission.  If  the  producers  went  to  the  commission  with  a  trust  or 
monopoly  agreement  asking  the  commission  to  approve  it,  they  would 
not  approve  it.  In  other  words,  the  commission  would  stand  not  only 
to  protect  the  coal  producers,  but  the  public  as  well. 

MR.  S.  A.  TAYLOR:  Mr.  Chairman  and  Gentlemen:  In  answer 
to  one  argument  that  Mr.  Mayer  raised,  I  would  just  like  to 
call  attention  to  Sections  5  and  6  of  this  law.  In  discussing  this  matter 
we  have  had  just  the  argument  brought  before  us  that  Mr.  Mayer  has 
raised,  and  I  think  if  you  read  those  two  sections  you  will  find  that  they 
take  care^of  that  very  thought,  namely,  that  the  party  who  is  injured  is 
in  a  position  to  elect  to  take  the  compensation  and  he  is  virtually 
estopped  from  proceeding  against  his  employer  under ^the  liability  act. 
The  wording  of  these  sections  is  very  concise  and  I  will  just  read  them: 

Sec.  5.  The  provision  made  for  indemnity  of  employes  under 
this  Act  is  and  shall  be  construed  as  being  in  lieu  of  and  in  satis- 
faction of  all  claims  for  indemnity  against  any  employer  by  any 
employe  by  reason  of  any  injury  received  in  the  course  of  his  em- 
ployment, and  the  acceptance  of  any  benefit  under  the  provisions  of 
this  Act  by  any  person  or  persons  shall  constitute  a  bar  against  any 
action  brought  by  any  such  person  against  his  said  employer  on 
account  of  any  such  accidental  injury. 

Sec.  6.  The  institution  of  any  suit  in  law  or  equity  by  any  em- 
ploye against  his  employer  for  damages  on  account  of  personal  in- 
juries received  in  the  course  of  his  employment  as  aforesaid,  shall 
constitute  a  forfeiture  of  said  employe's  right  to  receive  indemnity 
from  the  fund  herein  provided  for  and  the  amount  to  which  said 
employe  would  in  the  absence  of  such  suit  be  entitled  to  receive  from 
such  fund,  and  in  addition  thereto  his  proper  court  costs  expended  in 
defending  such  suit  shall  be  paid  by  the  State  Auditor  (or  other 
agency  authorized  to  administer  the  fund)  to  said  defendant  employer 
upon  the  termination  of  such  suit  to  reimburse  him  to  that  extent 
for  the  judgment  and  costs  for  which  he  may  become  liable  in  any 
such  suit;  the  total  amount  of  such  payment,  however,  shall  not  ex- 
ceed the  sum  of  five  thousand  ($5,000)  dollars. 

The  point  I  wish  to  make  is  that  in  the  preparation  of  this  law  not 
only  have  we  discussed  this  thoroughly,  but  it  was  discussed  by  various 
members  of  the  association  before  this  committee  took  it  up,  and  the  pri- 
mary object  was  this:  If  the  person  maimed  or  killed  chose  to  enter  suit 
against  his  employer,  he  would  then  not  be  permitted  to  get  the  benefit 
of  this  act.  They  either  had  to  do  one  thing  or  the  other.  After  they 
chose  to  receive  the  benefits  under  the  compensation  _act  they  were 
estopped  to  proceed  under  the  liability  act.  I  believe"  this  could  be 
modified  to  make  that  clear. 

MR.  MAYER:  This  law  does  not  make  an  employe  come 
under.  You  catch  my  remark?  In  other  words,  it  is  not  com- 
pulsory, Mr.  Taylor,  for  an  employe  to  come  under  this  bill.  He  is 
free  to  take  either  horn  of  the  dilemma.  If  he  has  got  liability  legisla- 
tion he  will  take  liability  legislation,  especially  if  all  your  defenses  are 
removed  like  fellow  servant,  hazardous  risks  and  contributory  negligence. 


44  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

If  you  have  got  those  liability  measures  on  your  statute  books  as  there 
are  in  some  of  our  statutes,  and  you  pass  this  bill,  you  can't  compel  the 
employe  to  come  under  this  bill,  and  if  you  can't  compel  him  to  come 
under  this  bill  he  can  then,  if  he  has  a  good  case  against  you,  sue  you 
under  the  liability  act  and  stick  you  for  any  amount  up  to  $100,000  for 
permanent  disability.  If  it  is  a  poor  case  he  will  take  the  compensation 
provided  in  this  bill.  For  instance,  if  he  hasn't  got  any  case  he  will  take 
the  benefits  under  the  measure  here,  but  if  you  have  got  laws  on  your 
statute  books  against  you,  which  many  of  us  have,  he  will  take  whichever 
horn  of  the  dilemma  will  amount  to  the  most  for  him,  and  what  we  main- 
tain is  that  in  passing  this  legislation  that  the  defenses,  those  particular 
liability  measures,  applying  to  our  business,  should  be  removed. 

MR.  S.  A.  TAYLOR:  Replying  to  that  question,  I  will  say  that 
came  up  in  some  of  the  states  and  if  they  were  not  entitled  to  sue  under 
the  employers'  liability  act,  they  were  entitled  to  sue  under  common 
law.  In  other  words,  an  act  such  as  this  is  questioned  because  it  raises 
the  question  whether  any  man  can  be  deprived  of  his  common  law  right 
to  sue  for  damages. 

MR.  HpRACE  J.  STEVENS,  Michigan:  That  is  not  a  common  law 
privilege,  it  is  a  statutory  provision.  The  liability  legislation  is  a  statu- 
tory measure. 

MR.  S.  A.  TAYLOR:  I  understand  that,  but  suppose,  as  in  many 
cases,  the  states  do  not  have  a  liability  act  and  yet  under  the  common 
law  he  can  sue  for  damages,  so  that  there  is  a  question  in  drawing  this 
bill  whether  any  bill  could  be  drafted  by  which  the  common  law  provision 
would  be  set  aside;  and  in  that  event  these  two  clauses  that  were  placed 
in  here  were  put  there  with  that  express  purpose,  that  if  they  could  force 
them  to  elect  whichever  benefit  they  would  take,  after  they  had  chosen 
they  would  be  estopped  to  proceed  under  the  other. 

MR.  E.  L.  DELESTRY,  Minnesota:  Mr.  Chairman  and  Gentlemen- 
lam  not  interested  in  coal  mining,  but  I  represent  such  immense  interests 
in  metal  mining  in  seven  different  states  that  I  believe  I  may  be  heard 
just  for  a  moment  and  give  you  the  experience  we  just  had  a  few  months 
ago  with  a  similar  measure  in  the  state  of  Minnesota,  which  fell  by  the 
wayside  by  adverse  decision  of  the  supreme  court.  I  wish  to  go  on 
record  here  once  and  for  all  and  as  heartily  supporting  the  metal  states 
of  the  southwest  in  the  position  taken  by  Mr.  Vinson  of  West  Virginia. 
To  attempt  any  state  legislation  to  meet  this  issue  is  a  hopeless  task. 

I  was  one  of  the  committee  appointed  by  the  governor  to  frame 
a  workmen's  compensation  law  for  the  state  of  Minnesota.  One-half  of 
that  commission  was  taken  from  the  ranks  of  labor;  the  other  half  was 
divided  into  operators  in  iron,  miners  of  building  stones  and  manufac- 
turers. We  endeavored  to  place  upon  labor  its  just  burden  of  the  com- 
pensation act,  and  we  have  had  sittings  daily  for  three  months  and  pre- 
pared the  bill  which  we  believed  was  equitable  and  wise,  placing  upon  the 
ranks  of  labor  25  per  cent  of  the  charge  of  the  compensation,  and  we 
placed  in  that  bill  a  repeal  of  all  liability  acts  then  in  existence.  We 
sent  that  bill  to  the  legislature,  and  it  was  passed.  The  very  interests 
whom  we  tried  to  benefit,  the  laboring  element,  instituted  a  suit  and  beat 
us  out  in  the  supreme  court  this  last  year.  Now  you  gentlemen  speaking 
for  the  coal  industry  must  kindly  remember  that  some  of  us  have  similar 
interests  in  the  metal  mining  industry,  and  if  you  are  going  to  pass  a 
workmen's  compensation  act  we  ought  to  have  something  to  say  on 
that  subject.  It  was  the  metal  industry  that  secured  for  you  the  Bureau 
of  Mines.  It  was  the  metal  industry  that  spent  its  time  and  money  in 
Washington,  and  while  we  are  tickled  to  death  to  have  the  coal  men  come 
in  even  at  this  late  day  and  join  hands,  let  us  go  along  the  lines  of  least 
resistance,  and  the  suggestion  from  the  gentleman  from  Virginia  is  in 
my  opinion  the  only  practical  conclusion  which  we  as  mining  men  and 
employes  can  ever  reach. 

I  had  not  intended  to  take  part  in  this  discussion.  I  would  not  go 
before  another  state  legislature  to  try  to  get  a  compensation  act  through, 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  45 

either  in  Minnesota  or  in  Arizona,  for  all  the  gold  there  is  in  our  moun- 
tains. 

Now,  gentlemen,  if  we  have  succeeded  to  get  in  the  entering  wedge 
by  the  creation  of  the  Bureau  of  Mines,  and  there  is  the  man  (referring 
to  the  Secretary)  you  have  got  to  thank  as.  one  of  the  men  of  five  on 
our  committee  who  was  always  on  the  job.  (Applause.)  We  did  the  very 
best  we  could.  We  took  what  we  could  get  as  an  entering  wedge,  and 
we  even  suggested  the  men  who  should  run  that  bureau.  Gentlemen, 
this  is  just  the  beginning  of  big  things  to  come  if  we  are  to  protect  the 
industry,  whether  it  be  coal  mining  or  what  not,  and  the  workmen's 
compensation  system  must  be  uniform  and  applicable  to  every  branch 
throughout  the  United  States  or  the  United  States  Supreme  Court  will 
knock  it  higher  than  Gilroy's  kite.  You  can't  go  in*o  any  state  and  single 
out  one  industry  like  coal  mining  and  say  we  want  this  tax — it  must  be 
made  to  apply  generally. 

I  have  heard  in  the  discussion  something  about  paternalism  in  Ger- 
many. Thank  Heaven  we  don't  have  to  go  to  Germany.  I  know  what  I 
am  talking  about,  because  I  studied  in  Heidelberg  for  four  ye~ars.  We  can 
go  to  the  Government  of  the  United  States  and  get  such  a  measure  as 
this  advocated  by  Mr.  Vinson,  and  my  friends  in  Congress  will  surely 
support  it  and  each  industry  that  I  represent  will  support  it,  providing  the 
old  liability  legislation  is  wiped  out.  You  have  44  states  to  fight  with  on 
one  hand  where  you  won't  succeed,  where  you  have  only  one  United 
States  Government,  and  when  you  get  an  interstate  commerce  proposi- 
tion you  will  succeed.  (Applause.) 

MR.  STEVENS:  Mr.  President,  I  would  like  to  ask  one  question. 
If  we  secure  a  national  compensation  act  along  the  lines  suggested  by 
the  gentleman  from  West  Virginia  we  will  have  left  the  specific  statutory 
law  providing  for  the  collection  of  damages  or  the  common  law  under 
which  damages'  can  be  collected  in  every  individual  state  in  the  Union. 
We  will  be  caught  coming  and  going,  too. 

MR.  DE  LESTRY:  We  have  today  a  railroad  commission  to  regu- 
late railroad  rates,  and  an  interstate  commerce  court  of  last  resort. 
That  sticks,  doesn't  it? 

MR.  C.  C.  WOODSON,  Arkansas:  I  wish  to  say  this:  Las* 
«vinter  we  had  a  proposition  something  like  this  before  the  legislature 
at  Little  Rock,  and  there  was  one  railroad  attorney  who  came  before 
the  committee  and  said  that  the  money  which  the  railroad  people  paid 
out  did  not  go  to  the  man  who  was  damaged  in  many  instances.  It 
went  to  attorneys,  for  court  costs,  and  other  things.  He  said  the  year 
before  they  paid  out  something  like  $1,200,000.  He  said  some  of  it 
was  spent  very  unjustly.  There  was  one  party  who  got  $35,000,  while 
probably  75  per  cent  of  the  cases  that  come  before  the  court  had  been 
beaten,  and  he  felt  as  a  railroad  attorney  that  if  some  kind  of  com- 
pensation bill  could  be  worked  out  that  it  would  be  better  for  the  labor- 
ing people,  better  for  the  working  people,  because  75  per  cent  of  them 
that  take  cases  into  court  get  beaten.  If-  some  kind  of  equitable  measure 
could  be  gotten  up  through  Congress  or  some  other  way  whereby  the 
employes  of  the  company  when  they  were  injured  could  get  a  certain 
amount  of  wages  so  as  not  to  increase  the  cost  that  they  had  been  to 
in  this  suit,  it  would  be  satisfactory  to  their  railroad,  and  it  struck  me 
as  a  mining  operator  that  it  was  a  very  good  thing.  Just  like  the  gen- 
tleman from  Kansas  City,  I  don't  feel  that  we  ought  to  adopt  a  resolu- 
tion asking  Congress  to  tax  1  cent  a  ton  for  all  the  coal  mined  and  then 
let  the  man  who  had  a  good  case  against  us  come  in  and  sue  for  dam- 
ages and  get  $25,000.  If  they  did  I  would  not  be  in  business  long.  I 
am  not  competent  even  to  serve  on  a  committee  to  consider  these 
things,  but  these  are  points  that  the  gentlemen  v/ho  are  on  this  com- 
mittee should  think  about  very  seriously,  and  if  we  can  work  out  this 
question  through  a  compensation  'bill  covering  everything,  why  I  say 
we  ought  to  enter  into  it,  whether  metal  miners,  coal  operators,  or 
what  we  are. 


46  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

MR.  VINSON:  May  I  answer  the  question  asked  me  by  the 
gentleman  from  Michigan?  I  had  in  contemplation  that  the  Federal 
action  in  taking  charge  and  jurisdiction  and  control  of  this  matter 
would  take  the  whole  thing  entirely  out  of  state  jurisdiction  under  the 
provision  of  the  Constitution,  that  the  Constitution  of  the  United 
States  and--  the  acts  of  Congress  are  the  supreme  law  of  the  land, 
placing  us  under  the  same  jurisdiction  precisely  as  that  creating  the 
Interstate  Commerce  Commission,  which  has  denied  to  all  states  and 
state  officials  any  interference  with  interstate  commerce.  This  is  Inter- 
state business  pure  and  simple.  As  the  gentleman  said,  who  has  just 
spoken,  the  very  fact  that  this  law  would  provide  that  the  party  who 
was  injured  would  get  his  compensation  would  be:  forever  a  bar  from 
bringing  or  maintaining  any  suit;  in  other  words,  the  operator  would 
nay  one  cent  a  ton  for  complete  indemnity  against  all  suits. 

MR.  STEVENS:     It  might  be  absolutely  unconstitutional. 

MIR.  VINSON:  As  to  the  legality  of  that  I  have  got  a  brief  upon 
the  subject,  and  I  will  be  very  glad  to  furnish  the  gentleman  a  copy. 

MR.  GLENN  W.  TRAER,  Illinois:  I  wish  to  ask  for  informa- 
tion. Is  it  the  view  of  the  committee  that  this  bill  will  protect  the 
employer  by  reason  of  its  providing  that  in  the  case  of  a  suit  by  the 
employe  under  the  common  law  or  the  ordinary  statutory  rights  and 
a  judgment  in  his  favor,  that  this  commission  shall  reimburse  him? 
Is  it  the  belief  that  the  employer  will  thereby  be  fully  protected  against 
any  sum  that  juries  may  see  fit  to  give  in  an  ordinary  accident  law? 
It  seems  it  has  limited  the  maximum  amount  which  may  be  paid  from 
this  fund  to  reimburse  for  damages.  In  'Illinois  we  frequently  have 
verdicts  much  in  excess  of  $5,000,  and  the  verdicts  are  increasing  right 
along. 

MR.  J.  W.  DAWSON,  West  Virginia:  Of  course  the  committee 
understood  judgments  against  employers  would  exceed  $5,000,  but  they 
thought  that  the  amount,  $5,000,  would  equal  the  average  amount  of 
judgments  that  would  be  recovered  against  employers,  and  they  did 
not  think  it  wise  to  make  it  too  large,  for  the  reason  it  might  run  up, 
unnecessarily,  and  the  charge  would  not  let  them  out. 

MR.  TRAER:  I  would  like  to  ask- whether  the  committee  then 
took  into  account  the  possibility  that  as  soon  as  juries  should  learn  that 
an  employer  was  going  to  be  recompensed  in  these  ordinary  actions  at 
law  out  of  this  fund,  as  soon  as  they  should  "learn  that,  what  means 
could  be  employed  to  prevent  them  from  simply  increasing  the  ver- 
dicts which  they  had  been  in  the  habit  of  giving  so  far,  and  which,  .as 
I  say,  are  increasing  continually?  What  means  could  be  employed  in 
the  view  of  the  committee  to  prevent  juries  from  simply  making  the 
verdict  larger? 

MR.  DAVID  ROSS,  Illinois:  I  will  say  briefly  in  answer  to  Mr. 
Traer,  that  the  principal  consideration  that  the  committee  had  in  mind 
upon  that  proposition  was  to  take  this  class  of  cases  out  of  the  juris- 
diction of  juries  altogether.  We  have  had  now  too  much  litigation  on 
this  subject,  and  it  is  not  a  legitimate  subject  for  court  decision.  The 
entire  purpose  of  this  legislation  is  to  dispense  .with  the  necessity  of 
having  lawsuits,  and  the  experience  of  countries  where  such  laws  have 
been  in  operation  has  been  to  do  away  practically  with  the  necessity 
of  litigation  at  all.  Now  even  in  the  governments  from  countries  whose 
constitutions  are  very  much  different  from  ours,  they  do  not  recognize 
individual  rights  to  the  extent  that  republics  have  done,  but  in  the 
fundamental  law  of  those  countries  the  right  of  an  individual  to  sue 
his  employer  to  recover  damages  is  recognized  and  is  fundamental.  It 
is  a  serious  question  in  law  whether  that  privilege  can  be  absolutely 
abridged;  the  bulk  of  legal  judgment  is  that  it  cannot,  and  that  you 
cannot  under  any  system  of  compensatory  legislation,  or  of  liability  law, 
take  that  privilege  from  men  whether  they  be  citizens  of  American 
republics  or  subjects  of  foreign  countries.  Under  the  British  com- 
pensation law  less  than  4  per  cent  of  damage  claims  have  been  liti- 
gated; 96  per  cent  of  them  have  been  adjusted  without  question,  and 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  47 

settled  to  the  satisfaction  of  everybody  under  the  compulsory  law  of 
that  country,  and  that  seems  to  be  the  experience  of  all  the  other  coun- 
tries that  have  had  occasion  and  the  necessity  of  enacting  legislation 
such  as  that  here  proposed.  Unfortunately,  Mr.  Chairman,  it  is  more 
of  a  legal  question  than  it  is  an  industrial  issue,  arid  that  is  the  obstacle 
today  in  the  state  of  Illinois  and  in  all  the  other  states  of  the  Union, 
and  in  the  Federal  Government.  It  is  a  question  of  just  how  far  you 
can  go  in  the  way  of  law.  To  what  extent  can  you  determine  and 
measure  the  rights  of  men?  By  what  legal  plan  are  you  going  to  decide 
upon  the  equities  between  men  and  men?  It  is  a  legal  question  now, 
unfortunately  so.  We  nave  been  compelled  here  in  Illinois  in  legislat- 
ing upon  this  subject,  to  make  our  law  optional.  Practically  ten  other 
states  in  the  last  year  and  a  half  have  enacted  optional  law.  That 
means  that  the  individual  can  accept  the  compensation  provided  for 
in  the  compensatory  law,  or  that  he  might  elect  to  disregard  the  com- 
pensation and  sue  under  the  general  liability  law.  "Jhe  opinion  of  the 
appellate  court  of  New  York,  declaring  invalid,'  the  compensation 
law  of  that  state  because  it  was  compulsory,  has  induced  the.  other 
legislatures  to  pass  such  optional  laws.  The  only  general  distinction 
in  the  list  of  progressive  states  on  this  subject  is  that  of  Washington. 
Instead  of  proceeding  as  we  did  in  Illinois  and  in  the  other  states  pass- 
ing laws  providing  for  specified  benefits,  in  Washington  they  have  exer- 
cised what  you  might  call  the  revenue  power  or  the  taxing  power  of 
the  state,  and  providing  for  taxing,  if  you  please,  the  different  hazardous 
occupations,  and  from  the  proceeds  of  such  taxation  secure  sufficient 
revenue  to  pay  the  compensation  provided  for  in  the  law.  Under  that 
act  while  it  is  supposed  to  be  a  denial  of  the  individual,  legal  idea  of 
freedom  of  contract,  as  generally  understood,  the  supreme  court  of 
the  state,  and  providing  for  taxing,  if  you  please,  the  different  hazardous 
taking  the  view  that  inasmuch  as  it  deals  directly  with  the  health  and 
welfare  and  safety  of  the  great  wage-earning  class  of  the  state  it  comes 
necessarily  within  the  police  power  of  the  state,  and  under  that  phase 
of  the  constitution  the  supreme  court  of  the  state  of  Washington  has 
affirmed  the  validity  of  that  law,  and  that  act  will  be  passed  up  for  the 
consideration  of  the  Federal  Supreme  Court  of  our  country;  and  prob- 
ably in  view  of  educational  influences  that  are  everywhere  at  work  on 
this  and  other  problems  affecting  our  life  and  our  government,  that 
court  when  it  commences  to  consider  that  question  may  take  the  same 
view  as  the  same  court  took  on  another  question  involving  the  real  or 
presumed  rights  of  individuals  as  it  did  in  a  case  coming  from  the  state 
of  Oregon.  The  Federal  Supreme  Court  affirmed  the  law  of  Oregon 
on  the  question  as  to  the  hours  that  women  should  be  permitted  or 
compelled  to  work,  and  it  may  continue  that  good  work,  as  I  hope  it 
will,  by  endorsing  the  validity  of  the  law  of  Washington  making  abso- 
lutely compulsory  the  compensation  for  accidents.  We  are  coming  to 
it  and  I  don't  think  we  can  evade  it.  The  issue  is  here  in  Illinois  and 
has  been  for  years  back,  as  it  is  in  every  other  industrial  state  of  the 
Union. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  I  regret  that  I  am  compelled  to  cut  short 
this  discussion,  but  your  time  has  expired. 

Upon  motion  additional  time  was  given. 

MR.  ROSS:  I  had  practically  finishe'd  with  that  branch  of  the 
argument.  I  simply  want  to  emphasize  and  call  attention  to  the  ex- 
cuses that  the  average  man  has  got  to  make  to  his  better  judgment  as 
a  reason  why  he  is  against  certain  proposed  laws.  When  this  matter 
came  up  originally  nobody  seemed  to  be  seriously  concerned  about  it, 
but  when  public  attention  was  riveted  on  it,  when  it  threatened  to 
become  the  subject  of  law  and  of  legislation,  then  the  interest  that 
seemed  to  be  against  the  trend  of  such  legislation  urged  that  they  were 
in  sympathy  with  the  tendencies  of  such  laws,  but  in  order  to  make 
them  effective  it  was  necessary  that  they  should  be  made  uniform,  and 
that  none  of  us  could  move  until  every  one  of  the  93,000,000  of  people 
in  this  country  were  ready  to  move.  That  condition  has  never  hereto- 
fore prevailed,  and  it  never  will.  You  have  got  to  begin  these  great 


48  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

reforms  in  the  localities  where  the  sentiments  in  their  favor  demand  it, 
and  that  argument,  that  objection,  has  been  urged  before  and  can  be 
urged  against  any  proposition.  It  was  urged  by  the  employers  of 
Massachusetts  fifty  years  ago  when  the  legislature  of  that  state  for 
the  first  time  proposed  the  imposition  of  certain  so-called  restrictions, 
providing  certain  regulations  in  behalf  of  men  and  women  engaged  in 
the  production  of  the  wealth  of  that  state.  The  manufacturers  of  Mas- 
sachusetts made  the  objection,  offered  the  criticism  that  localized  em- 
ployers are  urging  against  this  law,  that  its  adoption  would  handicap 
them  as  competitors;  that  they  would  be  shut  out  of  the  markets,  and 
that  it  would  mean  ultimately  ruin  to  their  business.  As  a  theory  that 
looks  all  right,  but  it  doesn't  work  out  that  way  in  practice.  The  manu- 
facturer of  Massachusetts  lived  long  enough  to  realize  that  what  they 
supposed  was  a  handicap  in  business  ultimately  proved  to  be  a  com- 
mercial and  economic  advantage,  and  they  never  lost  their  place  in  the 
industrial  scale,  because  of  standing  for  and  because  of  being  primarily 
compelled  to  observe  and  ,adopt  such  regulations.  Now,  we  hear  the 
echo  of  that  historic  measure  from  certain  states  that  have  not  yet 
sufficiently  progressed  to  adopt  such  legislation  as  your  report  endorses; 
and  that  the  employers  living  in  the  states  yet  under  the  old  common 
law  liability  would  be  at  an  immense  advantage  over  the  employers 
conducting  their  business  in  states  where  compensation  systems  prevail. 
I  think  they  have  got  the  reverse  English  on  that.  I  think  that  this 
advantage  would  be  against  the  employer  who  is  willing  to  stand  the 
expense  incident  to  the  eternal  test  of  what  a  man  might  recover  under 
a  general  liability  law,  and  not  against  employers  who  had  come  under 
reasonable  compensation  legislation. 

I  want  to  say  to  the  employers  of  labor  and  the  delegation  to  this 
convention  is  made  up  largely  of  that  class  of  men,  and  I  like  it  for  that 
reason,  I  like  to  think  that  this  program  has  gone  far  enough  to  receive 
a  favorable  consideration  and  the  adoption  of  a  report  from  a  com- 
mittee representing  your  membership  as  employers  of  labor  who  are 
ready  and  willing  .to  take  this  important  matter  out  of  the  hands  of 
pettifogging  lawyers  and  center  it  on  a  basis  of  humanity,  settle  it  on 
a  basis  of  right,  on  a  basis  of  honest  business.  I  want  to  say  to  that 
class  of  employers,  whatever  state  you  may  come  from,  that  when  your 
state  adopts  this  proposition,  when  you  know  for  a  certainty  just  what 
you  have  to  do  with  people  in  the  way  of  costs,  and  when  the  men 
whom  you  employ  know  when  an  accident  occurs  to  them  what  is  com- 
ing to  them,  without  the  necessity  of  a  lawsuit,  it  will  reduce  the  cost 
of  production,  it  will  multiply  the  profits  to  capital  and  enhance  the 
labor.  Let  us  take  the  great  broad  view  of  the  proposition.  Let  us  be 
governed,  Mr.  Chairman,  as  far  as  we  can,  by  the  experience  of  others, 
and  let  us  confront  the  facts  fairly  and  fully  and  not  waste  our  time 
dilly  dallying  with  mere  theory  and  indulging  in  baseless  fear.  I  thank 
you.  (Applause.) 

DR.  E.  R.  BUCKLEY,  Illinois:  I  would  like  to  make  this  one  sug- 
gestion if  I  may.  I  am  very  much  interested  in  this  discussion,  but  I  ap- 
prehend that  this  entire  matter  will  come  before  the  resolutions  commit- 
tee, and  that  it  will  probably  be  threshed  out  by  the  resolutions  commit- 
tee and  then  brought  on  the  floor  of  the  Congress,  and  it  is  very  likely 
that  the  gentlemen  who*  are  speaking  now  will  wish  to  be  heard  on  that 
resolution,  and  I  would  suggest  that  as  the  time  is  getting  late  and  we 
are  still  on  the  forenoon  program,  that  the  discussion  be  postponed 
until  the  time  the  resolution  comes  before  the  resolutions  committee 
and  later  before  the  Congress. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Doctor,  I  think  you  are  misinformed.  This 
is  a  report  of  a  committee,  and  it  is  now  before  the  convention  for  its 
adoption  or  rejection. 

DR.  BUCKLEY:  I  would  move  you  then,  Mr.  President,  that  the 
report  of  the  committee  be  referred  to  the  resolutions  committee  for 
their  consideration. 

Motion  carried. 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  49 

MR.  HARRY  S.  JOSEPH,  Utah:  Before  offering  a  motion  that 
I  desire  to  propose  I  wish  to  say  that  some  of  us  who  have  been  attend- 
ing the  Congress  from  year  to  year  in  looking  around  among  this  gath- 
ering miss  an  old  and  familiar  face,  that  of  Col.  Dorsey,  who  has  gone 
to  the  Far  Beyond  since  our  last  meeting.  I  move  you,  Mr.  Chairman, 
that  it  be  the  sense  of  this  convention  that  the  committee  on  resolu- 
tions bring  in  a  suitable  resolution  of  respect  in  honor  of  Col.  Dorsey, 
he  having  served  this  Congress  in  the  capacity  of  director  for  many 
years. 

MR.  S.  A.  TAYLOR:     I  want  to  second  that  motion,  but  I  wish 
to  state  that  already  there  has  been  under  consideration  not  only  Col. 
Dorsey,  but  several  other  prominent  mining  men,  with  the  intention  of 
bringing  in  a  resolution  for  each  one  of  them. 
Motion  unanimously  carried. 

THE  PRESIDENT:     We  will  now  be  favored  with  an  address  on 
"The  Copper  Industry,"  by  Horace  J.  Stevens,  Houghton,  Michigan. 
.   Mr.  Stevens'  paper  will  be  found  at  page  146  of  this  report. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  The  next  subject  is  a  very  important  one 
and  is  to  be  discussed  by  the  different  state  mine  inspectors  in  attend- 
ance, "How  to  prevent  Mine  Accidents."  The  subject  is  now  open  for 
discussion.  I  am  sure  there  are  quite  a  number  of  mine  inspectors  here 
as  delegates,  and  I  hope  that  some  of  them  are  in  attendance  this  after- 
noon so  as  to  speak  to  us  on  this  subject. 

MR.  S.  A.  TAYLOR:  There  are  quite  a  number  of  the  mine  in- 
spectors in  attendance,  but  they  have  evidently  left  the  room,  and  I 
would  suggest  that  that  subject  be  left  for  tomorrow  morning. 

THE   PRESIDENT:     If   there   is   no  one   here   to   speak  on   that 
subject  we  will  proceed  to  the  next  one,  "Federal  Investigation  of  Ore 
Treatment  Problems,"  by  Mr.  W.  N.  Sear<!y,  Silverton,  Colorado. 
Mr.  Searcy's  address  will  be  found  at  page  196  of  this  report. 
MR.   H.  O.  GRANBERG,  Colorado:     Mr.  Chairman,  I    would  like 
to  know  if  General  Irving  Hale  is  here,  and  whether  that  part  of  the  pro- 
gram will  be  discussed. 

SECRETARY  CALLBREATH:  Mr.  Hale  is  not  here.  He  is 
very  ill,  having  suffered  a  stroke  of  paralysis  about  ten  days  ago.  We 
have  a  statement  by  the  other  two  members  of  his  committee  that  in 
consequence  of  the  illness  of  General  Hale  it*  will  be  impossible  for 
them  to  make  a  report. 

MR.  GRANBERG:  I  would  like  to  hear  something  on  that  sub- 
ject. I  have  some  information  that  I  would  like  to  impart  to  the  Con- 
gress on  electrical  smelting  of  the  precious  ores. 

SECRETARY  CALLBREATH:  This  committee  had  nothing  to 
do  with  that.  Its  work  covered  only  electrical  installation  in  mines. 

MR.  S.  A.  TAYLOR:  Your  committee  on  electrical  standardiza- 
tion for  coal  mines  have  no  special  report  to  make  other  than  to 
report  progress  and  to  state  t  hat  the  report  which  they  made 
to  the  last  convention  in  Los  Angeles  was  adopted  almost  verbatim 
by  the-  Pennsylvania  state  legislature  in  their  mining  laws  this  last 
year,  with  only  a  few  minor  changes  to  comply  with  certain  statutory 
rights  and  duties  imposed  on  mines  by  other  officers  of  the  state. 
Outside  of  that,  Mr.  President,  •  it  was  adopted  practically  verbatim. 
We  have  had  no  objections  to  the  report  made  to  the  last  Congress; 
on  the  contrary,  we  have  received  a  great  many  very  commendatory 
letters  from  different  sections  of  the  country,  stating  that  the  practices 
suggested  in  that  report  were  in  their  judgment  proper.  I  presume  that 
this  year  will  show  forth  the  weaknesses,  if  there  be  any,  in  that  report 
in  the  actual  practice,  or  rather  putting  it  into  practice  in  the  state  of 
Pennsylvania.  Outside  of  that  we  have  nothing  to  report  but  prog- 
ress, and  we  would  suggest  that  this  same  committee  be  continued. 
There  is  a  possibility  that  this  year  we  may  receive  some  suggestions 
along  the  line  of  modification  after  the  actual  putting  into  practice  of 
our  report. 


50  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

MR.  GRANBERG:  I  would  like  to  inquire  if  this  committee  on 
the  use  of  electricity  in  metal  mining  will  be  continued,  owing  to  the 
absence  of  Mr.  Hale,  or  will  that  subject  be^under  discussion  now  or 
at  some  future  time? 

THE  PRESIDENT:  That  is  entirely  a  matter  for  the  conven- 
tion to  decide. 

MR.  GRANBERG:  It  is  a  subject  that  I  am  very  much  interested 
in,  and  I  would  like  to  see  that  subject  opened  up  and  discussed.  I 
haVe  made  a  close  study  of  it  for  some  time  and  I  don't  think  it  should 
be  passed  without  discussion.  It  is  too  bad  the  chairman  of  that  com- 
mittee could  not  attend. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  In  view  of  the  fact  that  the  committee  is 
not  ready  to  make  a  complete  report  and  the  suggestion  by  one  of  the 
gentlemen,  I  think  it  would  be  a  good  idea,  if  there  is  no  objection, 
that  that  committee  may  be  continued  for  another  year.  There  being 
no  objection  that  committee  is  continued. 

Whereupon  an  adjournment  was  taken  until  8  o'clock  p.  m. 

WEDNESDAY,  OCTOBER  25,  1911. 
Evening  Session. 

The  meeting  was  called  to  order  by  Mr.  S.  A.  Taylor. 

THE  CHAIRMAN:  The  first  paper  we  will  have  this  evening  will 
be  by  Mr.  Glenn  W.  Traer,  Chicago,  on  the  subject  "Anti-Trust  Laws 
in  Their  Relation  to  the  Mining  Industry." 

Mr.  Traer's  paper  will  be  found  at  page  270  of  this  report. 

THE  CHAIRMAN:  I  am  sure  we  have  listened  with  a  great  deal 
of  interest  to  Mr.  Traer's  paper.  We  have  another  paper  by  Mr.  D.  W. 
Kuhn,  of  Pittsburgh.  Mr.  Kuhn  is  unavpidabliy  absent,  and  Mr.  James 
W.  Wardrop,  of  Pittsburgh,  will  read  his  paper. 

SECRETARY  CALLBREATH:  Mr.  Chairman,  I  would  like  to  say 
that  Mr.  Kuhn  understood  he  was  to  be  here  tomorrow  night,  and  that 
we  were  to  have  this  part  of  the  program  at  that  time,  but  the  order  was 
changed  to  meet  other  conditions,  and  in  consequence  of  that  Mr.  Kuhn 
is  not  able  to  be  here.  Mr.  Kuhn  will  be  here  at  the  time  originally 
fixed  for  the  discussion  of  the  subject. 

Mr.  Wardrop  then  read  Mr.  Kuhn's  paper,  which  will  be  found  at 
page  257  of  this  report. 

Mr.  Walter  Williams,  of  Illinois,  then  addressed  the  convention 
wpon  the  subject  discussed  in  the  two  "previous  papers. 

Mr.  Williams'  address  will  be  found  at  page  280  of  this  report. 

THE  CHAIRMAN:  Mr.  Chapman,  we  would  like  to  hear  from  you. 

MR.  H.  L.  CHAPMAN,  Ohio:  Mr.  Chairman  and  Gentlemen: 
I  can  say  I  am  fully  in  accord  with  the  ideas  presented  in  thje  two  ad- 
dresses that  have  been  read  on  this  proposition  here  tonight,  and 
those  of  the  gentleman  who  has  just  spoken.  I  hope  that  something 
will  be  brought  about  as  the  result  of  this  discussion  before  the  Congress 
that  will  benefit  the  coal  industry  of  the  country  and  get  it  out  of  the 
chaotic  and  disastrous  condition  in  which  it  now  is. 

Whereupon  an  adjournment  was  taken  until  10  o'clock  a.  m.  Octo- 
ber 26. 

THURSDAY,  OCTOBER  26,  1911. 
Morning  Session. 

The  meeting  was  called  to  order  by  President  John  Dern. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  The  convention  will  please  come  to  order. 
I  believe  the  secretary  has  some  announcements  to  make. 

SECRETARY  CALLBREATH:  I  am  requested  by  Mr.  Eli  T. 
Connor  to  request  all  members  of  the  Mining  and  Metallurgical  Society 
of  America  to  meet  in  the  red  room  immediately  upon  the  adjournment 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS 


51 


of  the  session.  The  visiting  ladies  are  requested  to  meet  in  the  red  room 
at  1:30  o'clock  sharp.  The  local  committee  has  arranged  some  entertain- 
ment for  visiting  ladies. 

The  resolutions  committee  has  been  only  partially  selected.  Those 
states  which  are  not  represented  should  provide  a  representative  this 
morning  because  the  time  is  short  which  the  committee  will  have  to 
work,  and  the  committee  is  in  session  right  now.  The  other  states 
should  act  as  promptly  as  possible.  I  will  call  the  roll,  and  the  states 
that  are  not  represented  will  kindly  respond  at  once. 

The  Secretary  then  called  the  roll  of  the  states  and  the  membership 
of  the  resolutions  committee  was  announced  as  follows: 

COMMITTEE  ON  RESOLUTIONS. 


Alaska,  George  E.  Baldwin. 
Alabama,  Dr.  E.  A.  Smith. 
Arkansas,  J.  E.  Finney. 
California, -Nat  H.  Wheeler. 
Canada,  H.  H.  Lang. 
Colorado,  E.  M.  De  LaVergne. 
Georgia,  E.  L.  Martin. 
Idaho,  Ralph  Nichols. 
Indiana,  Jabez  Wooley. 
Illinois,  David  Ross. 
Iowa,  G.  F.  Kay. 
Kansas,  J.  N.  Hodges. 
Kentucky,  C.  J.  Norwood. 
Michigan,  F.  W.  McNair. 
Minnesota,   C.   E.   VanBarneville. 
Missouri,  W.  J.  Jenkins. 
Montana,  F.  W.  C.  White. 
Nebraska,  Erwin  H.  Barbour. 


New  Jersey,  Henry  B.  Kummel. 
New  Mexico,  T.  H.   O'Brien. 
New  York,   W.   W.   Miller. 
N.  Carolina,  Dr.  Joseph  Hyde.  Pratt. 
Ohio,  Lewis  T.  Wolle. 
Oklahoma,    James    Elliott. 
Oregon,  T.  C.  Burke. 
Pennsylvania,  Eli  T.  Connor. 
South  Carolina,  H.  L.  Scaife. 
South  Dakota,  W.  J.  Blake. 
Texas,   R.  J.   Broman. 
Utah,  Harry  S.  Joseph. 
Vermont,  George  B.  Milne. 
Virginia,  Van  Ness  Hermancc. 
Washington,  A.  J.  Reed. 
West  Virginia,  Z.  Taylor  Vinson. 
Wisconsin,  Prof.  W.  O.  Hotchkiss. 
Wyoming,  George  L.  Black. 


THE  PRESIDENT:  At  yesterday's  afternoon  session  we  passed 
one  of  our  most  important  subjects  for  the  reason  that  quite  a  number 
of  the  state  mining  inspectors  were  absent.  (As  this  is  an  important 
theme  we  thought  best  to  postpone  it  until  this  morning  so  as  to  give 
all  of  those  men  a  chance  to  speak  on  the  subject  of  how  to  prevent  mine 
accidents,  under  the  ten  minute  rule.  Understand,  no  one  is  to  speak 
longer  than  ten  minutes  as  we  have  an  extensive  program  for  the  day. 
I  will  first  call  on  Mr.  James  Taylor,  state  mine  inspector  of  Illinois,  who 
will  lead  the  discussion: 

MR.  TAYLOR:  Mr.  President  and  Gentlemen  of  the  American 
Mining  Congress,  and  Ladies:  One  of  the  most  important  subjects 
before  this  Congress  is  that  of  mine  accidents  in  and  about  coal  mines. 
It  is  a  question  that  has  been  discussed  in  our  National  organization  of 
inspectors,  and  we  feel  as  inspectors  of  coal  mines  that  there  should 
be  a  change.  Since  this  Congress  has  convened  eight  persons  in  Illinois 
were  killed  in  a  coal  mine  on  Monday,  simply  because  the  one  necessary 
thing  to  prevent  accidents  is  individual  effort  of  each  and  every  person 
in  or  about  coal  mines  was  lacking.  Our  system  of  mining  coal  is  radi- 
cally wrong,  and  the  time  has  come,  gentlemen,  when  the  inspectors  feel 
that  a  change  should  be  made  for  the  benefit  of  those  working  in  and 
about  coal  mines.  You  can  legislate  all  you  please,  that  is  not  going 
to  prevent  accidents  in  our  coal  mines. 

I  desire,  Mr.  Chairman  and  Gentlemen,  to  read  from  my  report  to 
the  Labor  Bureau  of  Illinois,  made  two  years  ago.  "In  my  text  at  that 
time  I  wrote  the  following.  You  will  find  it  on  page  351  of  the  coal 
report  for  1911. 

Mining  Laws  Printed  in  Foreign  Languages. 

The  greatest  number  of  accidents  in  coal  mines  occur  singly,  and 
should  teach  us  the  importance  of  individual  effort  in  preventing 
and  reducing  their  numbers. 


52  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

The  increase  in  the  number  of  non-English  speaking  miners, 
renders  a  close  oversight  over  these  workmen  imperative;  they 
should  receive  such  instructions  and  training  as  would  enable  them 
to  take  care  of  themselves  and  those  with  whom  they  are  working. 

When  we  take  into  consideration  that  the  majority  of  the 
men  now  mining  coal  in  this  state  are  unable  to  speak  the  English 
language,  we  shall  better  understand  the  importance  of  educating 
and  training  of  this  foreign  element,  who  are  not  only  foreign  to 
our  language,  but  are  entirely  foreign  to  any  knowledge  of  our 
methods  of  coal  mining. 

I  would  suggest,  that  a  set  of  questions  be  arranged,  with 
answers,  in  the  various  languages  and  given  to  each  foreign  miner 
working  in  or  about  our  coal  mines;  and  he  should  not  be  allowed 
to  work  alone  in  a  coal  mine  until  such  time  when  he  is  able  to 
speak  and  understand  the  following  English  words  and  phrases: 
Want  props;  way  to  escape  shaft;  way  to  hoisting  shaft;  air-course; 
close  the  door;  fire,  bad  roof;  set  a  prop;  look  out;  roof  falling;  keg 
of  powder;  explosion;  gas,  danger,  keep  out;  have  no  light  on  head 
when  handling  powder;  get  on  the  cage;  get  off  the  cage.  They 
should  also  be  thoroughly  instructed  in  the  state  code  of  signals,  and 
how  to  reclamp  the  hole  in  the  powder  keg  after  each  charge  is 
taken  out.  The  Slav,  Pole,  Hun  or  Italian  is  not  willfully  more 
careless  than  the  American  speaking  miner,  but  he  is  inexperienced 
and  ignorant  of  our  language,  hence  the  necessity  of  his  being  taught 
the  meaning  of  such  words  and  phrases  as  have  been  mentioned, 
before  he  is  permitted  to  work  by  himself  in  or  around  a  coal  mine. 
He  should  also  be  required  to  work  with  a  foreign,  American  speak- 
ing miner,  until  such  time  that  he  is  competent  to  understand  and 
speak  the  foregoing  English  words.  The  mining  law  should  be 
printed  in  the  principal  foreign  languages  parallel  with  the  English 
•language. 

Regulation  of  Electrical  Mining. 

The  increase  in  the  number  and  use  of  electric  mining  machines 
and  motors  has  been  noticed  during  the  last  few  years,  and  nowhere 
more  marked  than  ia  connection  with  coal  mines  of  this  state. 

The  electric  mine  locomotive  has  done  for  underground  haulage 
what  the  trolley  car  has  done  for  the  surface.  It  has  come  to  stay 
with  us  and  must  be  taken  into  account  in  the  product  of  our  mines. 
Up  to  this  time  we  have  no  legislation  in  Illinois  regulating  the 
installation  of  electric  machinery  in  coal  mines.  No  one  can  deny 
that  there  is  danger  connected  with  the  use  of  electric  power  in 
and  about  mines,  yet  there  has  been  no  law  enacted  along  these 
lines. 

In  compliance  with  section  12,  paragraph  (i)  of  the  general 
mining  laws,  I  would  recommend  the  passing  of  an  act  regulating 
the  installation  of  electric  machinery  in  and  about  coal  mines  and 
establishing  a  standard  method  and  practice  in  installing  electric 
machinery  in  mines. 

First  Aid  Work  in  Case  of  Accidents. 

I  am  desirous  of  seeing  at  each  mine  in  this  district,  the  estab- 
lishing of  first  aid  companies,  or  squads;  the  results  of  first  aid 
work  in  case  of  accidents  cannot  be  too  highly  commended,  it  not 
only  trains  men,  immediately  available  for  rescue  work  at  time 
of  an  accident,  but  prompt  treatment  given  the  injured  prevents 
unnecessary  suffering. 

The  importance  of  this  work  should  be  recognized  by  all  opera- 
tors of  shipping  mines  not  only  of  this  district  but  of  the  state, 
and  I  hope  that  they  will  take  the  matter  under  advisement;  and 
if  any  coal  company  or  set  of  miners  desire  to  establish  a  first  aid 
squad  and  will  let  me  know,  I  shall  be  glad  to  help,  and  do  all  in 
my  power  in  teaching  such  a  squad*how  best  to  perform  this  human- 
itarian work  at  our  coal  mines. 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  53 

I  would_ appeal  for  volunteers  from  each  mine  in  my  district 
to  form  a  first  aid  squad,  the  work  must  be  entirely  voluntary,  and 
no  pecuniary  inducements  of  any  sort  are  to  be  considered.  I  will 
endeavor  to  prevail  on  the  coal  companies  to  furnish  all  equipment 
necessary  so  that  men  volunteering  for  this  work  will  be  put  to  no 
personal  expense;  however,  I  desire  that  every  man  shall  feel  that 
he  is  doing  philanthropic  work  and  may  thereby  possibly  save  the 
life  of  many  badly  injured  miners  and  be  the  means  of  placing  them 
in  the  hands  of  a  surgeon  in  a  much  better  condition  than  would 
be  possible  without  the  first  aid  work. 

In  case  of  accident  the  essential   points  are — a  knowledge  of 
what   to   do;    promptness;    self-possession   and   perseverance.     Who 
will  make  the  first  call?     What  coal  company  will  be  the  first  to 
provide   one   or  more   cars   for  no   other   purpose   than   to  be  used 
in  conveying  injured  persons  in  your  mine   to   the  surface.     They 
should  be  long,  low,  and  wide  without  ends,  having  a  spring  mattress 
to  support  the  stretchers.     Such  a  car  will  save  many  a  miners  life. 
MR.    TAYLOR    (Continuing):      Gentlemen,    I    spoke    of   our    sys- 
tem of  mining  coal.     Our  system  is  wrong.     As   one  of  the   inspectors 
of    Illinois    I    have    again    and    again    remonstrated    against    our    sys- 
tem.    Our   system   of   miring  coal    should   be   classified.      It   is    a   trade, 
and  the  men  that  we  have  today  handling  powder  in  aur  mines  should 
be  selected.     Some  men  in  our  coal  mines  are  fit  for  nothing  else  than 
to  load  coal;  others  should  handle  the  powder,  fire  shots;  others  should 
handle  machinery,  and  when  this  classification  comes  to  us  I  feel  that 
our  accidents,  at  least  in  Illinois,  will  be  reduced.     Each  individual  should 
be  taught  that  he   is  responsible  for  certain   conditions.     Most   of  you 
know  that  some  time  ago  here  in   Illinois  it  was  the  lack  of  individual 
effort  on  the  part  of  two  men  at  the   Cherry  disaster  that  caused  265 
men  to  lose  their  lives.     It  is  the  lack  of  individual  effort  in  every  acci- 
dent that  we  have  ever  had  in  the  state  of   Illinois.     Individual  effort 
should  be  made,  and  if  it  were  made  these  accidents  would  be  reduced. 
For  that  reason  I  am  in  favor  of  the  classification  of  workmen  in  our 
mines.     Who  was  called  upon  to  take  the  responsibility  of  the  disaster 
at  Cherry?    Who  was  called  upon  to  risk  their  lives?    It  was  the  mining 
inspectors  of  Illinois.     We  are  the  fellows.     They  think  it  is  our  duty. 
Gentlemen,  I  want  to  say  that  no  person  in  this  meeting  today  is  more' 
anxious,  more  interested  in  the  reducing  of  accidents  in  and  about  the 
coal  mines  than  your  state  mine  inspectors.     (Applause.) 

MR  ANDREW  STEVENSON,  State  Mine  Inspector,  Michigan: 
Mr.  Chairman  and  Gentlemen  of  the  American  Mining  Congress:  I  have 
listened  very  attentively  to  the  remarks  that  have  been  made  by  the 
delegates  to  this  convention  and  I  think  many  of  them  have  been  appro- 
priate to  this  occasion.  But,  while  the  discussion  was  going  on,  I 
thought  how  much  grander  it  would  be  if  the  remarks  were  put  into 
practice.  You  are  all  aware  of  the  fact  that  actions  always  speak  louder 
than  words.  Words  in  this  day  and  age  without  work  are  like  faith 
without  works,  both  being  alone.  Gentlemen,  when  the  Honorable 
Chase  S.  Osborn,  Governor  of  Michigan,  gave  me  my  commission  to 
attend  this  convention  as  a  delegate,  if  I  understand  the  Governor  right, 
and  I  think  I  do,  I  do  not  believe  it  was  his  intention  that  I  should 
come  here  to  see  and  be  seen,  but  as  a  disciple  to  learn  and  listen  to 
the  arguments  and  ideas  presented  here  by  the  able  men  that  attend 
this  convention. 

I  would  like  to  make  a  few  remarks  along  -the  lines  of  the  dis- 
cussion yesterday  in  regard  to  compensation  and  what  should  be  done 
in  order  to  prevent  so  many  serious  disasters  happening  in  the  future 
as  there  have  been  in  the  past  in  the  coal  mines  of  the  United  States. 
I  do  not  think  I  could  do  better  on  this  occasion  than  to  tell  a  little  of 
my  practical  experience  as  a  miner.  I  recollect  not  long  ago  one  case 
in  particular  of  a  man  who  was  hired  to  mine  coal.  He  was  given  a 
place  to  work  in  and  a  kit  of  tools  and  mining  supplies,  but  after  being 
shown  his  place  to  work  he  did  not  know  anything  about  coal  mining. 


54  •  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

He  was  at  a  loss  to  know  what  to  do  in  order  to  get  coal  ready  for 
the  next  day.  He  depended  solely  on  the  men  around  him  for  informa- 
tion of  what  he  had  to  do  to  mine  coal.  I  remember  the  advice  one 
of  the  miners  gave  him.  He  said:  "Inasmuch  as  you  do  not  know 
anything  about  coal  mining,  I  will  show  you  how  it  is  done."  He  showed 
him  where  to  drill  a  hole  and  told  him  how  much  powder  to  use.  He 
said  to  him:  "After  the  cartridge  is  made  place  one  end  of  the  fuse 
in  it  and  split  the  other  end,  then  light -the  fuse  and  run  to  a  place  of 
safety."  But,  instead  of  the  man  cutting  off  three  or  four  feet  of  the 
fuse,  which  would  have  been  sufficient  for  that  shot,  he  put  one  end 
of  the  fuse  in  the  cartridge  and  split  the  other  end  of  the  coil  some 
fifty  feet  in  length.  Gentlemen,  that  is  a  sample  of  the  men  that  are 
sometimes  hired  to  mine  coal.  If  that  man  had  been  injured,  or  if  he 
had  injured  or  killed  some  one  else,  either  that  day  or  a  month  or  so 
later,  would  he  have  been  responsible?  Not  knowing  the  dangers  at- 
tached to  coal  mining,  I  do  not  think  he^would,  neither  do  I  think  com- 
pensation should  coyer  a  case  of  this  kind.  What  the  miners  want  is 
a  preventive  for  accidents  along  these  lines. 

I  know  of  another  case  which  happened  where  a  man  was  given 
work  "and  when  lunch  time  came  the  men  working  around  him  invited 
him  to  come  out  and  have  lunch  with  them,  but,  instead  of  that,  he 
got  his  pipe  and  tobacco  and  commenced  searching  for  a  match  after 
hunting  around  for  some  time  he  finally  found  one  in  his  coat  pocket. 
That  man  had  never  been  in  a  coal  mine  in  his  life  before,  and  was  so 
unaccustomed  to  the  use  of  a  lamp  that  had  he  not  found  a  match  in 
all  probability  he  would  have  gone  without  a  smoke  all  day.  What  the 
miners  want  are  laws  to  prevent  men  of  that  kind  from  being  injured 
in  the  mines  or  injuring  any  one  else. 

Again,  .we  will  say  that  we  have  many  mines  that  have  electric 
plants  installed  for  the  purpose  of  running  coal  cutting  machines  and 
motors  for  hauling  coal.  The  system  of  haulage  may  be  motor  or  the 
head  and  tail  rope,  but  there  is  no  other  way  for  the  men  to  go  to  and 
from  their  work  but  on  these  haulage  roads,  and  in  going  or  coming 
from  his  work  the  miner  may  meet  a  trip  of  coal  cars  and  in  a  hurry 
to  get  to  a  place  of  safety  his  light  goes  out,  leaving  him  in  darkness. 
In  order  to  get  out  of  the  way  of  the  trip  he  squeezes  into  the  first 
"opening  to  avoid  the  cars,  but  being  in  the  dark  he  may  not  be  clear 
of  the  track.  When  the  trip  comes  along  he  probably  is  injured  or  killed. 
Would  compensation  be  a  remedy  for  a  case  of  that  kind?  The  miners 
think  not.  It  is  a  preventive  they  want  for  such  a  case. 

In  some  of  the  same  mines  there  is  considerable  powder  used, 
but,  in  order  to  save  the  coal  company  the  expense  of  building  a  special 
car  that  would  be  non-conductive  of  electricity,  and  paying  a  man  to 
take  the  powder  in  when  there  is  no  current  on  the  wires,  the  company 
will  send  that  powder  down  in  the  morning,  put  it  in  a  steel  or  iron 
car  and  tell  the  mule  driver  to  take  it  in  with  him.  The  probabilities 
are,  just  as  it  happened  the  other  day  when  eight  men  lost  their  lives, 
that  he  may  run  into  a  live  wire  with  that  car  load  of  powder.  It  ex- 
plodes and  the  man  is  killed.  Is  compensation  to  cover  a  case  of  this 
kind?  No;  it  is  a  preventive  that  we  want. 

In  regard  to  cages  and  how  constructed.  We  have  laws  that  say 
every  hoisting  shaft  must  be  equipped  with  substantial  cages  fitted  to 
guides  running  from  the  top  to  the  bottom;  said  cages  must  be  safely 
constructed;  they  must  be  furnished  with  suitable  iron  covers,  not  less 
than  three-sixteenths  of  an  inch  in  thickness,  to  protect  persons  riding 
thereon  from  falling  objects.  The  cages  must  be  equipped  with  safety 
catches,  which  catches  must  be  examined  daily  by  the  mine  owners  or 
their  representatives.  Cages,  catches  and  rope  fastenings  shall  be  ex- 
amined daily,  and  cages  tested  by  drop  quarterly,  and  a  record  of  these 
examinations  shall  be  kept  by^  the  company.  Now,  that  part  of  the 
law  is  all  right,  but  when  the*coal  companies  do  that,  does  it  justify 
them  when  they  put  on  hoisting  ropes  in  leaving  them  to  remain  on 
until  they  become  crystallized  or  brittle  and  break?  When  nine  times 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  55 

out  of  ten  the  cage  never  stops  until  it  reaches  the  pit  bottom,  if  it 
should  happen  that  there  were  men  on  the  cage  when  the  rope  breaks, 
and  there  have  been  cases  of  that  kind,  there  can  only  be  one  result 
and  that  is  the  men  on  the  cage  are  killed.  Now,  I  think  what  the  miners 
want  is  that  every  precaution  should  be  taken  for  their  safety  in  the 
line  of  hoisting  ropes.  Then,  when  that  is  done  and  an  accident  happens, 
give  them  compensation. 

We  have  mines  running  today  that  have  veins  of  coal  five  or  six 
feet  in  thickness,  and  are  'Worked  under  the  room  and  pillar  system. 
I  will  say,  to'  illustrate  a  case  in  one  of  these  mines,  there  is  an  entry 
with  twenty  or  thirty  rooms  turned  off  it.  Ten  or  twelve  of  the  rooms 
may  have  been  worked  out  and  part  of  the  pillars  between  rooms  drawn, 
letting  the  roof  fall,  perhaps  to  the  height  of  twenty  or  thirty  feet,  or 
perhaps  to  the  rock  which  may  be  a  few  feet  more  or  less.  That  being 
a  gaseous  mine  gas  no  doubt  would  accumulate  in  that  dome  or  high 
place.  The  wrecks  of  the  rooms  still  standing,  air,  if  there  was  any  in 
circulation  in  those  abandoned  rooms,  would  not  go  any  higher  than 
the  thickness  of  the  vein  of  coal.  Some  day  a  miner  may  be  passing 
these  abandoned  rooms  when  a  fall  of  slate  would  take  place  where 
the  gas  has  gathered,  driving  the  gas  out  on  the  miner's  naked  light. 
The  result  would  be  an  explosion.  If  it  should  be  a  dusty  mine  perhaps 
causing  a  dust  explosion,  killing  all  the  men  on  the  entry.  Now,  I 
believe  the  miners  want  laws  that  will  compel  coal  companies  to  exercise 
all  due  precaution  in  the  operating  of  their  mines,  so  that  accidents 
could  not  happen  along  these  lines,  and  that  no  foul  nor  obnoxious 
gases  that  are  dangerous  to  breathe  could  get  out  of  these  abandoned 
rooms  and  get  mixed  with  the  air  that  men  have  to  breathe  to  the 
extent  that  their  health  would  be  impaired. 

Then,  again,  we  will  say  that  there  are  mines  here  in  Illinois  and 
in  other  states  that  have  been  running  for  thirty  or  forty  years,  and 
the  escape  shaft  may  not  be  over  lOCTfeet  or  so  from  the  main  hoisting 
shaft;  while  the  working  places  may  have  been  extended  back  a  mile 
and  a  half  or  perhaps  two  or  three  miles.  When  the  men  are  all  at 
work  a  fire  may  take  place  and  the  men  cannot  reach  the  escape  shaft 
nor  the  main  hoisting  shaft,  just  as  in  the  Cherry  disaster.  What  would 
be  the  result?  The  men  would  lose  their  lives.  Would  compensation 
be  any  recompense  for  the  mothers,  wives,  sisters  and  little  orphan 
children  who  had  lost  their  dear  ones  in  that  mine?  No,  indeed!  What 
I  think  is  required  is  a  law  enacted  whereby  accidents  could  not  happen 
from  such  causes. 

The  subject  of  compensation  is  secondary  to  that  of  mine  fatalities. 
They  have  been  occurring  so  often  in  the  past  that  we  think  something 
should  be  done  to  try  and  stop  accidents  happening  from  the  sources 
that  I  have  mentioned.  Give  us  laws  of  that  kind  and  see  that  they 
are  rigidly  enforced.  I  realize  that  just  as  long  as  there  are  coal  mines 
and  railroads  there  will  be  accidents,  but  let  us  see  to  it  that  we  try 
every  way  in  our  power  to  make  them  as  few  as  possible. 

MR.  H.  S.  JOSEPH,  Utah:  I  move  you,  Mr.  Chairman,  that  the 
subject  matter  contained  in  the  annual  address  of  the  president  of  the 
Congress  be  referred  to  the  committee  on  resolutions,  with  instructions 
to  draw  up  such  ajesolution  as  the  matter  in  the  address  may  suggest. 

(Motion  carried.) 

MR.  JOHN  VERNER,  Iowa:  Mr.  Chairman  and  Gentlemen  of  the 
American  Mining  Congress,  I  was  not  aware  until  a  few  moments  ago 
that  I  would  have  the  privilege  to  address  you  on  the  subject  of  mine 
accidents  and  I  shall  only  state  very  briefly  my  views  as  to  the  funda- 
mental requirements  for  their  prevention.  This  morning  I  saw  displayed 
on  the  floor  below  a  number  of  appliances  intended  to  be  used  to  provide 
an  increased  measure  of  safety  to  life  and  property  in  the  mines.  These 
appliances  have  merit,  and  commendation  is  due  the  men  who  invented 
them  and  placed  them  on  the  market,  but  the  fact  .remains  that  the 
mere  providing  of  mechanical  devices,  commendable  as  it  is,  cannot  be 
depended  on  to  assure  safety.  It  has  just  been  said  by  Mr.  Taylor  of 


56  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

Illinois,  that  individual  effort  is  required  for  the  elimination  of  mine 
accidents  and  I  fully  agree  with  him,  but  I  desire  to  add  that  individual 
effort,  supplemented  by  the  intelligent  co-operation  of  all  mine  employes, 
promises  still  better  results,  for  the  safety  of  a  mine  depends  and  must 
always  depend  on  the  combined  efforts  of  all  connected  with  it,  from 
the  trapper  boy  to  'the  superintendent  and  manager,  and  in  order  that 
these  efforts  may  produce  the  best  effects,  it  is  necessary  that  the  mine 
worker  be  taught  to  understand  and  appreciate  the  nature  and  possible 
extent  of  the  dangers  incident  to  mining,  to  the  end  that  with  the  full 
knowledge  of  these  facts  he  may  be  better  prepared  to  protect  himself 
and  others  against  these  dangers  and  that  he  may  also  more  fully 
realize  the  need  and  value  of  prompt  and  intelligent  action  to  prevent 
them  from  getting  beyond  control.  The  human  factor  in  the  prevention 
of  mine  accidents  is  paramount  and  the  man  who,  in  case  of  an  incipient 
mine  fire,  for  instance,  uses  his  dinner  pail  filled  with  water  or  his  coat 
promptly  and  effectively  to  put  out  the  fire,  is  of  vastly  more  importance 
in  the  preservation  of  life  and  property  than  the  installation  of  many 
alarm  gongs  in  a  mine  or  even  a  well  equipped  fire  fighting  apparatus 
stored  at  the  bottom  of  the  shaft  or  possibly  on  the  outside.  (Applause.) 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Is  Mr.  Rotting  of  Washington  present?  We 
are  waiting  for  Mr.  Botting  to  return,  and  I  will  call  on  Mr.  Rutledge 
of  Illinois  in  the  meantime.  Is  Mr.  Rutledge  present? 

During  the  short  intermission,  waiting  for  Mr.  Botting  to  return, 
I  will  give  the  members  present  an  opportunity  to  introduce  any  resolu- 
tions which  they  may  wish  to  introduce  this  morning,  which  would 
come  under  the  beginning  of  our  regular  program  for  this  morning. 

The  Secretary  then  read  resolution  No.  7,  which  was  referred  to 
the  committee  on  resolutions. 

Resolution  No.  7,  Introduced  by  H.  O.  Granberg,  Colorado. 

Whereas,  There  are  known  to  be  several  experimental  proc- 
esses for  the  smelting  and  refining  of  metals  and  some  in  practical 
operation  on  iron  and  magnetic  cobalt  and  nickel,  silver  ores,  and 

Whereas,  It  is  claimed  this  system  is  capable  of  recovering 
a  larger  percentage  of  all  metallic  values  than  has  ever  been  recov- 
ered by  any  method  heretofore  employed;  therefore, 

Be  It  Resolved,  That  the  American  Mining  Congress  appoint 
a  committee  of  three  members,  consisting  of  one  electrical  engineer, 
one  metallurgist,  and  one  metal  mine  operator,  to  fully  investigate 
the  practical  and  commercial  utility  of  the  several  systems  now 
claiming  to  smelt  and  refine  metals  by  the  electrical  process. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Mr.  H'.  G.  Davis  of  Pennsylvania. 
MR.  DAVIS:  Mr.  President  and  Gentlemen. of  the  American  Min- 
ing Congress:  At  my  own  solicitation  I  am  glad  to  have  the  opportunity 
to  stand  before  you  today  as  a  representative  of  the  hard  coal  mines. 
We.  in  the  anthracite  region  of  Pennsylvania  have  our  accidents  and 
they  are  very  numerous.  During  the  last  four  or  five  years  we  have 
made  special  efforts  with  the  intention  of  reducing  these  accidents. 

We  have-had  organized  in  the  various  towns  and  cities  in  the  region 
what  are  known  as  district  mining  institutes  under  the  auspices  of  the 
Y.  M.  C.  A.,  and  the  mining  men  of  the  different  localities  in  Lacka- 
wanna,  Luzerne  and  Schuylkill  counties,  and  we  feel  as  though  we  are 
up  against  a  proposition  that  we  cannot  remedy  or  relieve  very  greatly. 
It  is  true  that  the  number  of  accidents  have  been  reduced  by  the  con- 
certed and  individual  efforts  made  along  this  line,  but  we  do  not  feel 
that  we  are  in  a  position  as  yet  to  make  any  boasts  with  regard  to  it. 
However,  we  want  to  say  to  you  that  we  are  victims  of  circumstances. 

Mr.  Taylor  of  Illinois  just  told  us  that  the  system  is  wrong.  That, 
of  course,  refers  to  Illinois.  Our  system  is  also  entirely  wrong.  The 
Welsh,  English  or  German  or  other  intelligent  miners  have  all  been 
ostracized  or  banished  from  our  region.  We  have  a  law  that  compels 
an  intelligent  man  to  work  in  pur  mines  two  years  as  a  laborer  before 
he  can  become  qualified  as  a  miner,  with  the  result  that  the  non-English 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS.  57 

speaking  miner  comes  to  our  regions,  and"  he  has  friends  or  he  makes 
friends  very  shortly,  through  whom  he  secures  a  miner's  certificate.  We 
have  a  board  of  examiners  composed  of  about  twelve  miners  for  each 
county,  who  are  supposed  to  examine  these  miners,  and  the  applicants 
are  supposed  to  be  intelligent  enough  to  answer- twelve  questions  in  the 
English  language  before  they  can  receive  a  certificate  of  competency. 
How  they  get  those  certificates  we  are  unable  to  tell,  but  an  applicant 
comes  to  the  top  of  our  shafts  or  slopes,  and,  of  course,  he  is  asking 
for  a  chamber  (thus  meaning  a  place  to  cut  coal).  The  mine  foreman 
says:  "Do  you  understand  gas?"  He  doesn't  understand  the  question. 
And  then  this  question  is  put  to  him  in  this  way,  he  says,  you  forstay 
gas?  Oh,  yes,  me  forstay  gas.  Me  burn  gas  in  number  eleven,  and  me 
burn  in  Malby.  He  knows  all  about  it.  He  has  been  burned  by  gas 
twice.  (Laughter.)  Now,  the  mine  foreman  has  very  little  choice.  I 
know  of  one  mine  foreman  in  the  city  of  Wilkes-Barre,  who  once  said 
"I  will  not  employ  any  of  those  fellows  if  I  don't  get  a  car  of  coal  out." 
That  was  several  years  ago,  and  he  kept  that  up  until  he  had  133  places 
standing  idle.  That  is  quite  a  proposition.  The  superintendent  finally 
told  him  you  have  got  to  hire  some  one  to  get  coal  out.  What  did  he 
do?  He  was  compelled  by  force  of  circumstances  to  employ  men  who 
really  didn't  know  anything  about  mining,  but  they  were  qualified  by  the 
state  board  of  mine  examiners. 

Now,  as  one  of  the  individuals  who  has  got  to  contend  with  these 
circumstances  and  their  results — not  a  mine  inspector,  however,  but 
I  want  to  say  for  the  mine  inspectors  of  the  anthracite  region  that  they 
are  all  a  conscientious  lot  of  fellows.  They  generally  live  a  considerable 
distance  from  the  mines,  and  before  they  know  of  the  mine  fires  we 
generally  put  them  out.  (Laughter.)  Before  they  read  in  the  morning 
papers  that  we  have  had  an  explosion,  the  dead  and  injured  are  all 
taken  care  of,  and  then  the  mine  inspector  does  his  part.  (Laughter.) 

I  don't  know  anything  about  Illinois  coal  inspectors,  but  I  don't 
want  the  anthracite  inspectors  to  get  the  credit  that  belongs  to  others, 
and  permit  me  to  state  to  you,  gentlemen,  that  the  mine,  foremen  and 
mine  superinendents  are  the  men  who  are  generally  on  the  ground  when 
the  accidents  occur,  and  are  the  men  who  are  supposed  to  face  the 
music.  They  have  to  contend  with  the  conditions  existing  and  not  the 
mine  inspector,  as  described  by  Mr.  Taylor  to  this  Congress.  I  do  not 
know,  of  course,  what  the  conditions  are  in  the  state  of  Illinois,  but 
am  satisfied  that  the  men  behind  the  guns  in  the  state  of  Pennsylvania, 
especially  in  the  hard  coal  fields,  are  the  mine  foremen  and  the  mine 
superintendents,  but  what  I  wish  to  say  is  this,  personally,  I  have  no 
objections  to  the  law  qualifying  a  miner,  but  I  do  object  when  an  Eng- 
lishman or  Irishman  or  Welshman,  or  any  man  who  has  practically 
been  brought  up  in  the  coal  pit,  comes  to  our  region  and  is  compelled 
to  work  for  two  years  as  a  laborer  for  a  Polander  who  never  saw  a 
coal  mine  in  his  life,  before  he  can  be  qualified  as  a  miner.  It  is  true 
he  can  lie  and  he  can  get  somebody  to  vouch  for  him,  and  within  three 
weeks  after  he  reaches  us  he  can  be  qualified  as  a  miner.  Now,  I  have 
always  thought  that  the  law  is  wrong  in  the  first  place.  There  should 
be  no  specified  time,  in  other  words,  cut  out  the  service  clause.  I  am 
willing  to  qualify  a  man  and  I  am  willing  to  put  him  on  his  merits,  and 
I  believe  that  the  accidents  in  our  mines  are  to  be  reduced  only  by  the 
concerted  effort  and  the  individual  effort  and  the  education  of  the  men 
that  have  got  to  work  in  the  mines.  I  know  of  no  other  way  to  do  it 
better  than  that.  I  don't  believe  you  can  make  laws  that  will  do  it. 
We  have  in  Pennsylvania  laws  enough  to  take  care  of  the  coal  mining 
industry  in  the  United  States  and  the  United  Kingdom  together. 
(Laughter.)  What  do  they  amount  to?  Nothing.  We  have  rules  of 
the  company  that  I  work  for  and  we,  ourselves,  violate  them  sometimes. 
We  ought  not  to  have  any  rules  that  we  cannot  enforce.  We  ought  not 
to  have  any  rules  that  we  could  not  insist  on  being  obeyed  at  all  times. 

Gentlemen,  I  think  it  is  up  to  the  Mining  Congress  and  other  mining 
institutions  of  this  state  to  request  the  gentlemen  who  a.re  representing 
us  at  Harrisburg  to  repeal  the  law.  (Applause.) 


58  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

THE  PRESIDENT:     Is  Mr.  Botting  here? 

MR.  D.  A.  BOTTING,  State  Mine  Inspector,  Washington:  Mr. 
Chairman  and  Gentlemen  of  the  Congress:  I  didn't  come  here  prepared 
to  make  any  speech  on  mine  accidents.  I  have  listened  with  a  great 
deal  of  interest  to  Mr.  Davis  of  Pennsylvania  giving  the  mine  inspectors 
a  rub,  but  I  don't  altogether  agree  with  him  on  that.  Mine  inspection 
is  one  of  the  problems  that  all  states  have  to  contend  with.  The  great 
trouble  I  find  in  the  duty  of  mine  inspection  is  that  the  mine  inspector 
is  not  clothed  with  enough  authority  to  enforce  his  ideas  or  even  enforce 
the  laws  on  the  statute*  book.  We  have  a  lot  of  laws  in  the  state  of 
Washington,  and  I  think  there  are  laws  in  the  other  states,  too,  and 
when  we  close  a  mine  down  the  operator  has  a  chance  to  go  to  court 
and  put  the  case  before  the  judge  as  to  why  we  shut  it  down,  and  he 
goes  back  to  the  state  board  of  mine  inspectors  as  to  the  reason.  In 
plain  English,  the  mine  inspector  is  between  the  devil  and  the  deep  sea. 
He  has  got  the  mine  examining  board  on  one  side  and  the  mine  opera- 
tors and  the  mining  engineers  on  the  other,  and  if  he  goes  into  court, 
or  if  he  doesn't  go  to  court,  the  question  is  turned  over  to  the  state 
mine  examining  board.  If  they  see  fit  to  turn  down  his  rulings  or 
opinions  on  this  particular  question  he  has  to  go  away  back  and  sit 
down. 

Now,  mine  inspectors  in  my  opinion,  the  majority  of  them,  are 
very  hard  working  officials.  I  was  the  only  inspector  in  our  state  for  the 
last  seven  years.  Last  year  I  had  an  assistant  given  me.  I  worked 
probably  more  hours  than  any  other  man  in  the  state  of  Washington. 
I  have  been  subject  to  telephonic  and  telegraphic  communication  for 
eight  years  and  I  never  had  a  vacation.  I  have,  however,  given  this 
matter  considerable  study  and  I  believe  that  one  of  the  things  that 
has  never  been  discussed  and  which  every  inspector  has  to  go  up  against 
in  preventing  mine  accidents  is  that  you  have  got  to  get  at. the  indi- 
vidual as  well  as  the  operator.  In  the  old  countries,  like  France,  Ger- 
many and  Belgium  and  England,  they  provide  punishment  for  the  indi- 
vidual for  the  violation  of  the  laws  and  rules  governing  each  town, 
and  I  think  that  the  mine  inspector  should  get  down  and  advocate 
a  law  of  that  kind  in  the  United  States  and  every  state  in  it,  and  then 
we  will  begin  to  cut  down  our  individual  accidents.  I  find  that  in  going 
to  our  mines  the  miner  is  working  at  the  face  of  the  roof,  probably 
they  are  back  fifty  or  sixty  feet  from  the  face.  We  have  a  cap  rock 
in  our  district  and  it  sounds  pretty  good,  and  all  at  once  the  rock  goes 
down,  and  two  men  gone.  Now,  those  men  should  be  liable  to  punish- 
ment for  not  keeping  the  timber  up  in  the  mine.  And  if  they  fail  they 
ought  to  be  punished.  If  they  keep  the  timbering  up  the  cap  rock  would 
have  no  chance  to  come  down.  I  don't  know  how  many  of  the  inspectors 
will  agree  with  me  on  that  proposition.  But  I  think  that  is  one  of 
the  weak  parts  in  all  state  mining  laws,  that  there  is  no  provision  whereby 
a  miner  can  be  punished  for  violating  the  laws  and  rules,  outside  of 
removing  the  gas  light  or  something  of  that  kind.  They  are  not  subject 
to  punishment  for  the  negligence  which  causes  those  individual  accidents. 
Now,  in  my  state  I  will  give  you  an  illustration  of  what  occurred 
two  years  ago  last  February.  An  accident  occurred  in  a  little  mine  in 
Lewis  county.  I  had  intended  to  put  on  safety  lamps,  but  there  was 
very  little  gas  in  there,  I  thought,  it  was  only  in  driving  the  chutes.  I 
had  permitted  the  men  to  keep  a  safety  lamp  open  up  to  this  time  and 
every  once  in  a  while  a  fellow  got  burned  and  probably  two,  and  there 
was  a  fellow  killed.  I  issued  an  order  that  they  should  put  safety  lamps 
in  that  mine.  Now,  I  want  this  Congress  to  understand  that  it  was 
not  once  in  three  weeks  that  there  was  gas  in  those  chutes.  The  result 
was  that  thirty-five  of  the  miners  quite  that  day,  and  the  superintendent 
sent  for  me  and  told  me  he  could  not  run  the  mine.  I  told  him  "I  don't 
care  whether  he  ever  run  it  or  not,"  and  I  have  not  had  a  man  burned 
in  those  chutes  since,  and  that  is  going  on  three  years.  (Applause.) 

My  idea  of  preventing  men  being  burned  in  any  mine  where  gas 
is  generated,  and  I  don't  care  whether  it  is  once  a  month  or  once  in  six 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  59 

months,  if  you  work  that  mine  with  safety  lamps  you  are  not  going 
to  have  any  men  burned.  In  our  country  the  mining  conditions  are  very 
much  different  from  most  of  the  mines  in  the  east.  We  mine  coal  from 
seven  up  to  eighty  degree  pitch.  We  work  in  those  pitches  and  in  some 
of  those  leyels,  and  we  mine  coal  as  high  as  800  feet  off  the  level,  and 
carry  our  timbers,  and  the  men  use  only  our  safety  lamps  all  the  time. 
While  it  may  be  inconvenient  for  most  of  the  men,  it  is  better  to  have 
a  little  inconvenience  than  to  have  men  killed.  I  got  a  law  through 
our  legislature  two  years  ago,  not  this  last  session — providing  that  no 
safety  lamps  should  be  used  in  the  mines  unless  they  were  hermetically 
locked.  The  reason  I  did  that  was  that  I  found  upon  searching  the  differ- 
ent men  that  every  once  in  a  while  I  found  a  key  in  a  fellow's  pocket  that 
would  open  those  lamps,  and  I  began  the  system  of  making  search. 
After  I  found  those  keys  I  punished  those  men,  and  that  is  one  of  the 
offenses  they  can  be  punished  for  in  our  state,  that  is,  for  carrying  keys 
to  open  those  lamps,  and  we  fined  a  great  many  of  them  $75  and  costs. 
That  didn't  stop  the  practice  at  all,  so-  I  got  back  and  cut  out  the  key 
lamps  entirely.  I  have  the  fire  boss  use  a  key  lock  lamp.  I  found  that 
on  two  occasions  here  in  the  last  year  that  two  of  my  fire  bosses  got 
burned  just  from  haying  that  privilege.  They  got  up  into  the  fields 
and  backed  down  a  bit  and  thought  there  was  no  gas  there,  opened  the 
lamp  and  struck  a  match,  and  two  of  them  were  in  the  hospital  for 
two  months. 

One  of  tl\e  other  things  for  which  I  made  provision  was  to  have 
signs  up  one  foot  wide  and  two  feet  long,  indicating  the  direction  of 
escape  out  of  the  mine.  I  am  now  one  of  the  mining  commissioners, 
appointed  to  revise  the  mining  laws  of  our  state,  and  I  propose  to  insert 
in  the  laws  of  our  state  a  law  that  every  employe  has  got  to  walk  out 
through  the  escape  at  least  once  a  month.  (Applause.)  I  would  like 
to  have  the  mine  inspectors  say  that  the  employes  should  be  punished 
for  the  violation  of  mining  rules.  (Applause.) 

THE  PRESIDENT:  .Gentlemen,  I  think  this  concludes  this  dis- 
cussion, and  you  will  now  have  the  pleasure  of  listening  to  an  address 
by  one  of  your  directors  on  the  subject  of  the  present  condition  of  the 
coal  mining  industries,  Mr.  B.  F.  Bush  of  St.  Louis.  (Applause.) 

MR.  A.  J.  MOORSHEAD,  Missouri:  Mr.  Chairman  and  Gentlemen: 
I  am  here  representing  Mr.  Bush,  who,  I  regret  to  say,  was  unable  to 
be  here.  When  I  was  in  Mr.  Bush's  office  the  other  day  he  introduced 
me  to  some  .gentlemen  and  he  said  there  that  next  to  himself  I  was* 
the  greatest  coal  miner  in  this  country.  I  replied  and  said  that  I  had 
questioned  his  title  to  first  honors  for  several  years,  that  every  time 
that  I  had  undertaken  to  do  it  he  knocked  me  down,  and  a  gentleman 
present  said:  "That  is  nothing,  you  got  away  lightly,  he  killed  a  man 
here  this  morning."  (Laughter.) 

Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen,  I  hardly  feel  that  I  am  a  fair  repre- 
sentative substitute  to  prepare  and  read  an  address  for  Mr.  Bush.  How- 
ever, on  account  of  other  duties,  it  was  a  matter  of  impossibility  for 
him  to  take  up  the  subject  and  be  here,  much  as  he  would  have  liked 
to  have  attended. 

Mr.  Moorshead's  oaper  will  be  found  at  page  246  of  this  report. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Gentlemen,  while  we  no  doubt  all  regret 
very  much  that  Mr.  Bush  could  not  be  with  us  and  present  his  views 
in  person,  yet  we  believe  that  Mr.  Bush  in  selecting  Mr.  Moorshead 
has  chosen  a  very  capable  substitute.  The  subject  just  treated  by  Mr. 
Moorshead  is  now  open  for  discussion.  I  am  sure  there  are  other  gentle- 
men who  wish  to  speak  on  this  matter  and  I  will  call  upon  Mr.  Walter  S. 
Bogle  of  Chicago. 

Mr.  Bogle's  address  will  be  found  at  page  254  of  this  report. 

Whereupon  an  adjournment  was  taken  until  2  o'clock  p.  m. 


60  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

THURSDAY,  OCTOBER  26,  1911. 
Afternoon  Session. 

The  meeting  was  called  to  order  by  the  President. 

THE  SECRETARY:  The  members  of  the  resolutions  committee 
will  meet  in  the  red  room  at  the  north  end  of  the  hall  at  once.  The 
committee  is  now  in  session. 

MR.  H.  S.  JOSEPH,  Utah:  Mr.  Chairman,  I  would  like  to  have  all 
those  who  introduce  resolutions  appear  before  the  resolutions  com- 
mittee, inasmuch  as  the  committee  will  consider  all  resolutions  that  have 
already  been  introduced  this  afternoon.  We  would  like  the  gentlemen 
who  introduce  resolutions  to  appear  for  hearing  before  the  committee 
now. 

The  Secretary  then  read  Resolution  No.  8: 

Resolution  No.  8,  Introduced  by  Glenn  W.  Traer,  Illinois. 

Whereas,  The  bituminous  coal  mining  industry  of  the  United 
States  is  in  a  condition  which  is  harmful  to  the  public  interest  and 
is  disastrous  to  all  who  are  interested  in  or  dependent  upon -such 
industry;  and 

Whereas,  This  condition  very  largely  has  been  brought  about 
and  has  been  seriously  aggravated  by  unwise  laws  which  are  de- 
structive or  repressive  in  their  tenor  and  effect,  even  as  now  con- 
strued by  the  highest  court  of  the  land;  and 

Whereas,  The  present  form  and  spirit  of  such  laws,  as  con- 
strued by  the  courts  and  expounded  by  the  highest  public  officials, 
tend  to  the  unnecessary  and  avoidable  waste  of  an  exhaustible 
natural  resource  which  in  indispensable  to  the  life  of  industry  and 
civilization;  and  therefore  be  it 

Resolved,  That  it  is  the  sense  of  this  Congress  that  the  anti- 
trust statutes,  both  Federal  and  state,  should  be  so  amended  as  to 
(a)  state  plainly  that  contracts  or  combinations  for  the  regulation 
of  industry  shall  not  be  condemned  'as  criminal  or  held  invalid  be- 
tween the  parties,  except  to  such  extent  as  they  may  be  proven 
materially  harmful  to  the  public  interests;  and  (b)  that  provision 
be  made  for  the  creation  of  a  National  Trade  Commission  and  of 
similar  commissions  in  the  respective  states,  which  shall  have  sole 
original  jurisdiction  for  determining  prima  facie  the  legality  of  such 
contracts  or  combinations,  subject  to  the  right  of  Appeal  to  the 
upper  courts  by  the  public  officials  or  interested  parties. 

SECRETARY  CALLBREATH:  The  resolutions  committee  desires 
to  announce  its  wish  to  have  all  resolutions  introduced  before  the  ad- 
journment of  the  morning  session  tomorrow,  and  to  state  that  it  will  not 
consider  resolutions  introduced  after  noon  of  tomorrow. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  A  resolution  was  adopted  yesterday  instruct- 
ing the  Chairman  to  appoint  a  committee  to  draft  an  amendment  to 
the  by-laws  so  as  to  admit  coal  operating  organizations  and  kindred 
organizations  to  affiliate  with  this  Congress.  I  desire  to  announce  that 
I  wish  to  appoint  Mr.  E.  T.  Bent,  of  Illinois;  Mr.  E.  L.  De  Lestry,  of 
Minnesota;  Mr.  D.  MacVichie,  of  Utah;  Mr.  J.  W.  Dawson,  of  West 
Virginia,  as  such  committee,  and  I  would  further  suggest  that  inasmuch 
as  our  Secretary  is  very  familiar  with  our  by-laws  and  articles  of  incor- 
poration, that  he  be  added  to  such  committee  as  ex-officio  member. 
If  there  is  no  objection  to  that,  it  will  be  so  ordered. 

(At  this  point  Vice-President  S.  A.  Taylor,  of  Pittsburgh,  took 
the  chair.) 

THE  CHAIRMAN:  We  will  now  take  up  the  unfinished  morn- 
ing program,  and  the  first  on  the  program  is  Mr.  Harry  D.  Turney, 
of  Columbus,  Ohio.  Is  Mr.  Turney  in  the  room?  It  appears  not.  The 
next  is  Mr.  W.  R.  Woodford,  of  Pittsburgh.  He  is  not  here.  Mr.  Kuhn 
was  to  take  his  place.  I  believe  he  is  not  here.  The  next  is  Mr.  James 
Elliott,  of  Oklahoma. 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  61 

MR.  J.  E.  FINNEY,  Arkansas:  Mr.  Chairman,  Mr.  Elliott  was  sick 
and  could  not  be  present  and  asked  me  to  read  his  paper  for  him. 

Mr.  Elliott's  paper  will  be  found  at  page  221  of  this  report. 

THE  CHAIRMAN:  We  will  now  call  upon  Mr.  Walter  Calverley, 
of  Windber,  Pa. 

MR.  CALVERLEY:  Mr.  President  and  Gentlemen  of  the  Conven- 
tion: Until  a  few  moments  agcr  I  had  no  intimation  that  I  would  be. 
asked  to  talk,  and  I  am  at  a  loss  to  know  where  to  start.  As  I  look  upon' 
the  question  under  discussion,  it  would  seem  to  me  more  a  question  to 
be  discussed  from  the  commercial  end  of  the  coal  mining  business,  and 
this  is  the  end  of  the  coal  mining  business  with  which  I  have  had  very 
little  to  do. 

You  will  excuse  me  if  I  depart  a  little  from  the  subject  matter 
under  discussion.  I  have  heard  some  discussions  in  this  hall  in  which 
various  ideas  were  advanced  upon  the  prevention  of  mine  accidents,  and 
also  some  good  discussions  about  providing  compensation  for  workmen 
in  case  of  accident.  Let  me  say  right  here  that  I  am  fully  convinced 
that  some  plan  must  be  worked  out  in  the  very  near  future,  which 
will  provide  compensation  to  those  so  unfortunate  as  to  be  temporarily 
or  permanently  incapacitated  from  following  their  usual  occupations, 
so  as  to  provide  a  weekly  or  monthly  income  while  the  injured  party 
or  parties  are  convalescing.  Of  course,  we  all  know  that  we  will  always 
have  mine  accidents  just  as  long  as  we  engage  in  the  exploiting  of  differ- 
ent coal  fields.  However,  there  is  one  unfortunate  thing  to  be  deplored, 
and  that  is  that  the  public  is  given  to  believe  that  the  men  engaged 
in  the  coal  mining  industry,  having  invested  their  money  in  coal  lands, 
are  interested  only  in  getting  that  money  out  again,  and  have  little  regard 
for  human  life;  these  captains  of  industry  have  been  pronounced  the 
"Romanovs"  of  the  American  coal  fields  in  some  of  our  leading  journals. 
I  have  seen  many  of  them  make  great  sacrifices,  yet  they  are  not  given 
any  credit  for  providing  any  safeguards,  or  giving  any  thought  whatever 
to  the  care  and  protection  of  their  workmen.  I  have  had  thirty  years' 
experience  in  mines  in  this  country,  and  ten  years'  experience  in  England, 
and  I  am  proud  to  be  able  to  state  that  mining  has  made  some  rapid 
advances  along  the  right  line.  I  feel  that  the  miners  labor  under  better 
conditions  than  they  ever  did  before  in  the  history  of  coal  mining.  I 
also  feel  that  while  the  operators  can  certainly  do  more  than  has  been 
done  heretofore,  we  are  forced  to  the  conclusion  that  we  must  have  the 
co-operation  of  the  workmen  themselves;  without  this  there  is  a  limit 
as  to  how  much  we  can  accomplish. 

One  of  the  real  problems  in  coal  mining  is  the  education  of 
the  miner.  Last  year  I  visited  Europe  and  set  foot  upon  my  native 
soil  for  the  first  time  after  an  absence  of  thirty  years,  and  I 
went  to  see  what  the  mining  conditions  were  like  as  compared  with 
the  mining  conditions  and  practices  in  this  country.  I  could  not 
help  being  strongly  impressed  as  I  looked  across  some  of  the  working 
faces  down  the  shaft  mines  I  visited  by  the  way  the  men  did  their 
work  as  compared  with  the  men  I  have  to  handle  on  this  side.  I  feel 
that  if  we  had  the  same  class  of  labor  in  our  mines  as  the  labor  I  found 
in  the  mines  of  Great  Britain  and  Germany,  we  would  have  a  different 
tale  to  tell  than  that  which  we  have  to  tell  today.  I  know  in  my  sphere 
of  experience,  I  am  safe  in  saying  that  ninety  per  cent  of  the  men  who 
work  at  the  face  of  the  coal  come  from  Continental  Europe,  and  they 
have  had  little  or  no  experience  in  mining  prior  to  coming  to  these 
shores,  and  a  majority  of  them  are  not  able  to  speak  or  even  understand 
the  English  language.  I  am  pleased  to  note,  however,  that  we  are  mak- 
ing some  little  change  for  the  better  in  this  direction,  and  we  ought 
to  have  them  thoroughly  understand  the  rules  and  regulations,  and  have 
them  impressed  with  the  importance  of  strictly  observing  and  being 
guided  by  the  same.  In  the  mines  under  my  charge  I  have  rules  hanging 
up  in  a  conspicuous  place— not  only  the  rules  prescribed  by  the  state  law 
— but  rules  that  we  have  made  ourselves  with  a  view  to  safeguarding 
our  employes.  It  is  almost  a  daily  occurrence  that  we  have  to  discipline 


62  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS       . 

some  of  the  men  for  violating  these  rules.  I  think,  though,  that  by 
having  our  overseers,  mine  foremen  and  assistant  mine  foremen,  mingle 
among  the  men  and  use  every  endeavor  to  inculcate  proper  ideas  and 
habits  among  them,  that  they  must  necessarily  absorb  some  of  these  ideas 
and  habits  and  thereby  reduce  the  casualty  list  and  accomplish  some 
good.  I  might  relate  several  instances  where  accidents  have  happened 
that  it  has  been  my  experience  to  deliberately  pull  men  out  of  dangerous 
.  places,  and  insist  upon  their  making 'themselves  safe,  and  as  soon  as 
my  back  was  turned  they  would  deliberately  go  back  into  the  very  same 
place  of  danger;  these  are  things  of  every  day  occurrence.  Most  of 
the  accidents  that  happen  in  mines  are  due  to  the  willful  neglect  of 
ordinary  precautions  which  should  go  with  coal  mining. 

The  labor  question  is  one  of  the  serious  questions  that  confronts 
us,  and  we  must  give  due  consideration  to  the  source  from  which  most 
of  the  common  labor  comes,  and  their  previous  experience  in  industrial 
life.  This  thing  of  not  employing  men  in  the  mines  until  they  are  able 
to  speak  the  English  language,  and  have  had  experience  in  coal  mining, 
is  not  to  be  treated  seriously  at  this  time.  Years  of  experience  do  not 
serve  to  make  all  men  cautious.  Another  thing,  the  demand  for  coal 
during  the  past  few  years,  by  reason  of  the  'phenomenal  industrial 
growth,  has  been  such  as  to  make  it  absolutely  necessary  to  employ  any 
man  that  came  along,  to  be  able  to  meet  the  demands  of  the  market. 
Now,  we  would  never  think  of  sending  a  man  into  the  mine  to  work  by 
himself  if  he  was  ignorant  of  mining.  There  are  perhaps  some  cases 
where  such  has  been  done,  but  it  is  not  the  rule  by  any  means  to  send 
a  man  ignorant  of  mining  into  the  mine  unless  he  is  accompanied  by 
some  one  conversant  with  mining.  Some  of  the  discussions  upon  the 
subject  have  been  dwelt  upon  as  to  the  cause  of  serious  accidents  by 
some  of  the  inspectors.  I  have  every  regard  for  the  state  inspectors, 
and  it  has  been. my  experience  to  see  some  of  them  play  noble  and  heroic 
parts.  I  have  also  seen  the  men  upon  the  property  ready  to  step  to 
the  front  in  times  of  accidents  from  explosions  or  other  causes,  ready 
to  risk  their  lives  when  necessity  called  for  the  rescue  of  unfortunates 
who  might  have  been  in  the  mine  when  the  catastrophe  took  place.  It  is 
altogether  proper  to  give  credit  where  credit  is  due,  and  the  public  must 
believe  that  a  large  majority  of  the  men  in  charge  of  mines,  and  those 
owning  mines,  are  just  as  humane  in  their  feelings  as  men  engaged  in 
any  other  line  of  business,  and  I  think  that  they  have  shown  the  whole 
world  on  many  memorable  occasions  that  they  have  the  courage  and 
also  the  desire  to  take  their  own  lives  in  their  hands  when  it  comes 
to  rescue  work  in  connection  with  mine  disasters,  and  they  are  also 
ready  at  all  times  to  listen  to  any  suggestion  with  a  view  to  eliminating 
the  dangers  that  follow  the  coal  mining  industry.  It  is  the  duty  of 
the  employer,  of  course,  to  do  this,  and  it  is  also  the  duty  of  the  employe 
to  put  forth  his  best  effort  to  protect  himself. 

THE  CHAIRMAN:  We  will  now  call  upon  Mr.  Harry  N.  Taylor, 
Chicago. 

MR.  TAYLOR:  Gentlemen  of  the  Congress:  I  suppose  you  want 
the  poor  unfortunates  in  the  coal  business  to  tell  you  just  what  is  the 
matter  with  our  business,  and  I  am  going  to  tell  you  in  just  as  few 
words  as  I  can  what,  in  my  opinion,  I  think  we  are  suffering  from. 
There  are  three  or  four  direct  causes  and  probably  four  or  five  indirect 
causes,  which,  if  they  could  be  eliminated  would  very  much  stimulate 
the  coal  business,  not  only  in  Illinois,  but  in  all  the  adjoining  and  com- 
petitive states.  Our  first  trouble  is  that  our  cost  of  production  is  fixed 
by  a  hard  and  fast  rule,  and  contract  with  the  labor  organizations,  which, 
under  the  present  method,  is  practically  interpreted  by  them  to  mean 
what  they  want  it  to  mean,  regardless  of  what  the  language  of  the 
contract  is.  In  former  days,  even  working  under  a  contract  similar  to 
this  contract,  when  business  became  dull  it  was  possible  by  shifting 
around  the  work  in  the  mines  to  keep  your  cost  down  in  comparison 
to  the  slow  business,  but  under  the  present  construction  put  on  this 
contract  by  the  miners,  if  you  do  away  with  a  man  you  do  away  with 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  63 

the  job,  and  any  attempt  to  divide  the  job  up  immediately  calls  down 
the  wrath  of  the  organization  upon  the  poor  operator,  and  his  mine 
is  closed  down  and  his  cost  goes  up  and  his  expense  continues.  So 
much  for  that  side  of  the  question. 

On  the  other  side,  we  have  in  Illinois  a  condition  brought  about 
largely  by  the  mine  run  system,  the  making  of  multitudinous  sizes  of 
coal.  In  many  parts  of  the  state  they  make  as  high  as  12  and  13,  and 
even  a  higher  number  of  sizes  of  coal.  Now,  if  'every  operator  could 
get  his  orders  in  exactly  the  same  proportion  that  he  makes  the  sizes 
of  coal,  he  could  not  be  subjected  to  a  better  proposition,  but  as  it  is 
one  man  gets  an  order  for  a  thousand  tons  of  egg  coal,  we  may  say  3 
inch  egg,  and  in  order  to  make  that,  because  of  his  screening  arrange- 
ments, he  must  produce  3,000  tons  of  coal,  2,000  tons  of  which  he  has 
no  market  for.  If  he  gets  an  order  for  a  certain  size  of  nut  coal  he 
has  to  produce  2,000  tons  of  coal  in  order  to  supply  his  customer  with 
1,000  tons  of  the  kind  he  wants,  and  so  on,  until  we  have  always  a. surplus 
of  sizes  of  coal  which  that  particular  operator  has  no  market  for,  and 
has  to  dump,  wnich  breaks  down  the  price  on  the  sizes  of  coal  his 
neighbor  happens  to  have  an  order  for,  and  that  condition  of  affairs 
has  been  the  real  bottom  of  our  over  production  in  many  parts  of  this 
state,  and  the  cause  of  our  low  prices. 

Then,  again,  the  policy  of  some  of  our  railroads  as  taken  from 
the  view  of  conserving  the  coal  interests  has  a  very  important  bearing. 
Some  of  our  railroads,  pushed  as  they  are  to  operate  as  cheaply  as 
they  can,  have  forced  the  coal  men  to  bring  their  price  down  to  the 
lowest  possible  cost,  and  the  price  at  which  the  coal  is  sold  to  the  large 
consumers  is  so  near  that  of  the  pay  roll  that  when  a  man  on  that  line 
of  road  gets  a  mine  opened  up  that  has  particularly  good  conditions 
he  immediately  makes  his  lowest  price,  working  under  those  best  condi- 
tions, and  shuts  up  the  mine  next  to  him  or  forces  it  to  run  at  a  loss. 
A  little  water,  or  any  trouble  in  a  coal  mine  makes  you  shut  that  mine 
down  or  run  at  a  loss.  The  closing  of  these  mines  causes  the  loss  of 
millions  of  tons  of  coal  that  should  be  worked  for  public  good.  The 
consequence  is  that  the  operator,  in  his  endeavor  to  run,  is  forced  to  put 
coal  out  to  the  small  consumer,  the  domestic  trade,  at  an  abnormally 
high  price  to  try  to  bring  his  average  up  from  the  abnormally  low  price 
that  he  sells  the  coal  to  the  large  consumer  for,  whereas  if  the  railroads 
would  pay  just  a  little  more  it  would  not  be  necessary  to  force  the  sale 
of  a  small  portion  of  coal  at  an  extraordinary  high  price,  and  every- 
body would  get  a  more  even  price,  and  all  the  industries  would  be 
much  better  off  than  they  are  under  the  present  unwarranted  competitive 
conditions. 

Now,  I  believe  that  on  the  whole,  if  the  railroads  and  large  con- 
sumers could  see  their  way  clear  to  pay  even  5  cents  a  ton  more  than 
they  are  now  paying,  that  they  would  conserve  a  large  amount  of  coal 
which  is  wasted  through  the  causes  I  have  just  mentioned,  through  the 
inequality  of  conditions.  Every  one  of  the  coal  carrying  roads  are  lined 
with  abandoned  shafts,  which  could  be  worked  if  the  price  was  a  little 
higher.  In  other  words,  the  operators  have  to  keep  so  close  to  the 
cost  of  production  .that  the  slightest  inequality  makes  them  abandon 
a  mine.  This  is  one  of  the  curses  of  our  business. 

Now,  gentlemen,  there  is  one  other  question  touched  on  this  morn- 
ing, and  that  is  the  change  in  our  present  laws  which  would  allow  us 
to  get  together  and  adjust  prices  so  we  could  obtain  at  least  a  living 
profit  on  the  money  we  have  invested.  If  the  government  will  treat 
the  coal  industry  as  they  do  the  farmers  and  manufacturers  and  not 
only  give  us  experimental  stations,  but  allow  meetings  so  that  we  could 
get  our  industry  on  a  stronger  footing  without  greatly  raising  the  price 
to  the  large  manufacturer  or  consumer,  giving  a  lower  price  to  the  small 
consumer,  the  general  public  would  get  the  'benefit  of  such  permission 
to  get  together  and  handle  our  business  the  same  as  any  other  business 
is  handled.  We  then  could  get  a  labor  contract  that  could  be  enforced 
and  the  public  would  be  benefited  as  a  whole. 


64  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS   • 

THE  CHAIRMAN:  I  have  now  called  the  names  of  those  listed 
for  discussion  on  the  program,  and  we  will  now  have  general  discussion 
under  the  five  minute  rule  if  there  are  any  others  who  would  like  to 
discuss  this  question. 

MR.  HARRY  N.  TAYLOR:  I  would  like  to  hear  from  Mr.  R.  W. 
Ropiequet  of  St.  Louis. 

MR.  ROPIEQUET:  Sometimes  while  listening  to  coal  men  dis- 
cuss this  situation,  I  am  reminded  of  a  little  incident  that  happened  when 
I  was  a  boy.  I  was  on  top  of  a  shed  one  Sunday  afternoon  with  a 
cousin  of  mine,  who  ripped  his  coat.  He  was  afraid  of  being  punished, 
and  when  he  got  down  on  the  ground  he  ran  up  against  a  brother  of 
mine,  and  then  said,  VSee  what  you  did?  You  ripped  my  coat."  Some- 
times I  think  if  we  would  begin  to  stop  discussing  the  things  on  the 
outside,  and  look  a  little  bit  more  on  the  things  on  the  inside,  we  would 
get  along  just  a  trifle  better.  I  believe  that  we  use  the  anti-trust  law  a 
good  deal  like  the  fellow  that  ran  along  and  ripped  his  coat  and  blamed 
it  on  to  some  one  else,  after  he  had  ripped  it  himself.  I  know  that 
is  not  along  the  line  of.  our  general  discussion,  or  along  the  line  that 
we  generally  like  to  hear,  but  I  believe  it  is  actually  true  of  the  coal 
situation. 

We  are  our  own  worst  enemies.  We  talk  about  the  competitive 
field,  and  the  whole  thing  that  is  in  that  competitive  field  is  that  every 
fellow  has  got  his  knife  out  to  try  to  do  up  the  other  fellow.  I  believe 
if  we  could  change  the  laws  on  the  statute  books  today  that  with  the 
same  human  nature  that  is  in  the  coal  business  at  the  present  time, 
it  would  not  take  very  long  before  the  coal  men  would  be  exactly 
in  the  same  position  they  are  in  now.  Before  we  can  ask  anybody  to 
do  anything  for  us  we  ought  to  straighten  out  our  own  household.  The 
differences  that  exist  in  the  competitive  fields  today  are  such  that  men 
are  enemies  of  each  other  in  this  business,  and  they  can't  get  together 
on  any  platform  until  they  are  straightened  out;  and  I  believe  that  if 
this  mining  congress  would  accomplish  anything  of  benefit  to  the  coal 
business,  that  if,  instead  of  attempting  to  get  together  and  memorializ- 
ing congress  and  the  state  legislatures,  and  the  President  of  the  United 
States,  this  Congress  would  appoint  a  "club  committee,"  consisting  of 
interests  outside  of  the  coal  business,  who  would  get  right  together  with 
their  club  and  tell  the  coal  men  they  have  eot  to  behave  themselves  in 
their  own  ranks  and  straighten  out  their  own  inequalities  and  get  upon 
a  basis  of  brotherhood  between  themselves,  that  then  we  might  get  out 
and  accomplish  something  on  the  outside.  Until  that  is  done,  I  do  not 
see  how  we  are  going  to  accomplish  anything  by  any  cries  of  legislation. 

There  is  no  question  about  one  matter  of  unanimity  among  coal 
men.  It  was  voiced  here  the  other  evening  in  the  meeting,  when  every- 
body was  always  ready  to  sing  "There  is  a  hole  in  the  bottom  of  the 
sea."  Now,  that  hole  that  is  in  the  bottom  of  the  sea  hasn't  been  put 
there  by  the  anti-trust  legislation;  it  hasn't  been  put  there  altogether 
by  the  miners;  it  hasn't  been  put  there  by  the  outside.  But  it  has  been 
kicked  into  the  sea  and  the  boat  by  the  coal  men  themselves,  who  are 
in  the  boat  on  the  sea,  and  they  are  sinking  because  they  don't  seem 
to  have  enough  brain  power  or  enough  brotherly  spirit,  or  enough  inter- 
est in  their  own  business  to  get  together  and  close  up  that  hole  in  the 
bottom  of  the  sea,  and  in  the  boat,  instead  of  kicking  about  the  waves 
on  the  outside. 

Mr.  Chairman,  if  your  metal  mining  industries  who  talk  about  get- 
ting these  coal  men  on  the  outside  to  affiliate  with  you,  if  you  could  get 
them  into  the  school  room  of  organization  with  a  promise  that  they 
would  be  good  enough  to  let  some  outside  interests  come  in  and  fix  up 
the  differences  that  are  between  them,  then  they  could  present  a  united 
front;  but,  even  if  you  would  take  the  anti-trust  law  off  of  the  statutes 
of  the  United  States  today,  if  you  would  let  Mr.  Wickersham  and  the 
other  fellows  go  across  the  sea  where  Teddy  went;  if  you  would  get 
Mr.  Taft  not  to  say  a  solitary  word;  and  then  if  you  would  give  the 
coal  men  the  right  of  way;  the  very  first  thing  that  would  happen,  would 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  65 

be  that  Indiana  would  get  off  by  itself  to  see  how  it  can  knife  Illinois, 
and  Illinois  get  off  by  itself  and  see  how  it  can  knife  Indiana,  and  the 
southwest  would  not  be  in  it  at  all.  That  is  the  truth  about  the  situation. 
Let  us  face  it.  (Applause.) 

THE  CHAIRMAN:  "The  Economics  of  the  Coal  Industry"  is 
the  next  subject  for  discussion.  This  has  been  divided  into  three  parts, 
into  which  it  naturally  falls.  First,  coal  operators  or  producers;  second, 
the  miners;  and  third,  the  consumers.  Mr.  Carl  Scholz  will  represent 
the  position  of  the  coal  operators,  and  we  will  now  be  glad  to  hear 
from  him. 

Mr.  Scholz's  address  will  be  found  at  page  241  of  this  report. 

MR.  SCHOLZ  (Continuing):  By  way  of  explanation,  I  may  say 
that  I  referred  to  the  securities  issued  by  the  syndicate  as  bonds,  these 
bonds  are  what  we  would  call  stock.  The  coal  companies  simply  advance 
a  working  fund  which  is  utilized  by  the  syndicate  to  conduct  its  busi- 
ness until  collections  are  made,  and  you  will  be  undoubtedly  surprised 
to  know  what  a  small  amount  of  money  is  required  to  conduct  such  a 
large  business,  because  the  syndicate  is  practically  able  to  dictate  its 
own  terms  and  collections  are  made  very  promptly  and  very  efficiently. 
The  syndicate  has  adopted  a  number  of  restrictions,  such  as  confining 
the  sale  of  coal  to  consumers  of  a  stipulated  quantity.  No  consumer 
taking  less  than  6,000  tons  of  coal  per  year  can  deal  with  the  syndicate 
direct.  He  is  referred  to  another  sales  organization  existing  under  the 
syndicate,  and  as  a  whole,  these  regulations  are  so  well  carried  out  that 
the  consumer  himself  prefers  to  buy  from  the  syndicate  or  its  agents 
rather  than  from  the  independent  markets  which  are  supplying  coal 
in  the  same  fields.  You  will  be  surprised  to  know  that  Berlin,  with  an 
annual  consumption  of  two  and  a  half  million  tons  of  coal,  derives  one- 
half  of  its  output  of  coal  from  England.  Hamburg  and  similar  towns 
located  on  the  sea  and  receiving  water  coal  derive  all  their  coal  from 
England.  The  syndicate  cares  only  to  sell  to  markets  which  are  profitable. 

In  estimating  the  conditions  of  the  English  mines,  I  was  surprised 
to  learn  that  their  conditions  were  very  much  like  ours.  Operators 
complained  of  hard  times  and  their  organizations  met  with  little  success. 
Every  operator  pointed  with  envy  to -the  syndicates  existing  on  the 
continent,  which  are  by  no  means  confined  to  the  coal  mined  in  Germany, 
but  the  output  of  France  is  handled  through  a  syndicate  also,  As  gen- 
erally known,  France  has  an  anti-trust  law,  and  when  I  called  on  the 
chairman  of  the  central  committee  of  France,  I  asked  him  about  the 
syndicate.  "Why,"  he  said,  "  we  have  no  syndicate."  I  at  once  inquired 
from  the  next  man  I  saw  in  Brussels  what  he  knew  about  the  French 
syndicate.  "Why,  sure  we  have  a  syndicate,  but  we  call  it  an  informa- 
tion bureau."  They  collect  statistics  and,  although  they  call  it  an  in- 
formation bureau,  their  real  and  only  purpose  for  existence  is  to  main- 
tain a  staple  price  and  thereby  enable  their  operators  to  live.  There 
are  syndicates  in  Belgium,  France  and  Germany,  with  a  total  tonnage  of 
about  150,000,000  tons  per  year,  which  are  controlled  to  the  absolute 
advantage  of  the  operators,  their  miners,  and  to  the  disadvantage  of 
none,  as  far  as  I  can  see. 

A  number  of  inquiries  were  made  as  to  public  feeling  of  the  con- 
sumers towards  the  syndicates,  and  I  was  much  surprised  to  learn  that 
the  public  was  much  better  satisfied  with  conditions  now  existing  com- 
pared with  the  time  when  the  coal  was  sold  in  the  open  market,  such 
as  we  are  now  doing.  The  elimination  of  suicidal  competition,  fluctuation 
of  prices  to  both  extremes  and  the  fair  distribution  of  coal  to  large 
and  small  consumers  with  reasonable  differences  in  prices  is  valued  by 
the  consumers.  I  thank  you. 

The  Secretary  then  read  Resolutions  Nos.  9  and  10: 

Resolution  No.  9,  Introduced  by  J.  E.  Finney,  Arkansas. 

Whereas,  The  brightest  and  ablest  minds  of  this  country  are 
being  exercised  to  prevent  the  gross  unnecessary  waste  of  our  nat- 
ural resources  and  to  protect  life  and  limb;  and 


66  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

Whereas,  The  present  wasteful  and  dangerous  method  of  min- 
ing coal  should  receive  most  careful  consideration;  and 

Whereas,  Much  relief  can  be  secured  in  protecting  the  lives 
of  miners  and  in  the  conservation  of  coal  by  the  more  general  use 
of  picks  and  the  prohibition  of  excessive  use  of  powder;  therefore 
be  it 

Resolved,  That  we  recommend  that  the  practice  of  shooting-off- 
the  solid  be  discouraged;  and 

Resolved,  That  we  believe  that  the  best  way  to  improve  this 
dangerous  and  wasteful  method  of  mining  is  to  advocate  the  pay- 
ment for  mining  coal  universally  and  exclusively  on  the  screen  lump 
basis. 

Resolution  No.  10,  Introduced  by  Harry  N.  Taylor,  Illinois. 

In  view  of  the  increasing  importance  and  complexity  of  the 
mining  and  metallurgical  industries,  the  deplorable  waste  in  mining 
under  present  methods,  and  the  great  need  of  trained  men  to  aid 
in  improving  these  conditions  and  in  developing  greater  safety  and 
efficiency, 

Be  It  Resolved,  That  the  American  Mining  Congress,  now  in 
session  at  Chicago,  urges  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  at 
Washington  to  provide  for  aid  and  co-operation  in  the  maintenance 
of  mining  schools  in  the  several  states  in  a  manner  analagous  to 
that  which  has  been  done  in  behalf  of  agriculture. 

Be  It  Resolved,  That  the  members  of  the  American  Mining 
Congress  and  the  friends  of  the  mining  industry  throughout  the 
country  are  hereby  urged  to  co-operate  in  securing  the  proper  legis- 
lation necessary  to  carry  above  purpose  into  effect. 

THE  CHAIRMAN:  The  next  speaker  on  the  program  is  Mr. 
Thomas  L.  Lewis,  of  Bridgeport,  Ohio. 

SECRETARY  CALLBREATH:  Mr.  Chairman,  Mr.  Lewis  was  in- 
vited to  speak  tomorrow,  but  could  not  be  here  at  that  time  and  wired 
that  he  could  co^rne  if  he  was  allowed  to  speak  earlier.  I  wired  him  that 
we  could  place  him  .on  the  program  at  an  earlier  time,  but  he  received  my 
telegram  too  late  to  come.  I  have  a  telegram  from  Mr.  Lewis  expressing 
his  regrets  that  the  telegram  was  received  too  late  for  him  to  make 
arrangements  to  be  here. 

THE  CHAIRMAN:  The  next  speaker  is  Mr.  W.  L.  Abbott,  of 
Chicago.  He  is  not  here. 

SECRETARY  CALLBREATH:  Mr.  President,  Mr.  Abbott  was 
in  the  hall  at  noon  and  asked  when  he  would  be  called.  I  told  him  not 
before  four  o'clock,  and  it  is  my  fault  that  he  is  not  here. 

THE  CHAIRMAN:  Well,  while  we  are  waiting  for  Mr.  Abbott, 
we  will  have  a  paper  by  Professor  A.  H,  Purdue,  of  Arkansas,  on  "The 
Operation  of  the  Mine-Run  Law  in  Arkansas." 

Prof.  Purdue's  paper  will  be  found  on  page  227  of  this  report. 

THE  CHAIRMAN:  While  we  are  waiting  for  Mr.  Abbott  to 
come  in,  we  will  hear  any  discussion  that  might  be  desired  on  this  sub- 
ject. I  believe  we  might  revert  to  the  discussion  of  conditions  and 
remedies  under  the  ten  minute  rule,  as  I  see  Mr.  Kuhn  in  the  room. 
I  will  call  on  him  now  to  discuss  this  subject. 

MR.  D.  W.  KUHN.  Pennsylvania:  Mr.  Chairman  and  Gentlemen: 
I  certainly  haven't  very  much  to  say;  nothing,  in  fact,  but  I  might  tell 
a  story.  The  chief  justice  qf  North  Carolina  at  the  beginning  of  the 
Civil  War  couldn't  get  his  officers  to  enforce  a  decree,  so  he  rendered 
an  important  decision,  which  he  knew  very  well  wouldn't  be  carried 
out,  and  wound  up  the  opinion  by  saying  "The  judiciary  is  exhausted." 
I  want  to  say,  gentlemen,  that  in  the  paper  I  prepared,"  which  I  under- 
stand was  read  here  last  night  very  much  better  than  I  could  have  read 
it,  that  I  exhausted  myself  on  that,  and  for  me  to  say  anything  further 
would  simply  be  repeating  what  was  very  ably  read  last  night.  The 
only  thing  I  could  say,  and  that  is  an  idea  that  is  uppermost  in  my  mind, 
is  that  the  coal  mining  industry  should  do  less  talking  and  have  fewer 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  67 

resolutions  and  fewer  discussions,  and  for  a  short  time,  at  least,  get 
down  to  see  if  they  could  do  something  to  benefit  the  industry.  The 
only  way  that  appears  to  me  is  that  in  some  form  of  concentration, 
it  does  not  necessarily  follow  that  the  entire  industry  should  be  put 
into  one  great  corporation,  or  any  great  combination,  but  there  will 
have  to  be  some  form  of  concentration.  In  my  opinion  the  way  to  do 
that  is  for  each  coal  mining  district  to  bring  themselves  together  where 
physical  conditions  will  warrant,  bring  the  coal  mining  operators  to- 
gether for  the  purposes  of  operating  the  mines  and  for  the  purposes  of 
selling  the  product  and  conducting  the  coal  mining  industry  with  respect 
to. markets.  I  have  a  great  deal  to  say  in  a  way,  but  I  don't  feel  that 
I  could  do  justice  to  it  in  a  brief  speech  of  this  kind.  I  would  urge  and 
urge  strongly  that  for  once  in  our  lives  we  get  down  to  some  basis  by 
which  we  will  act  as  well  as  talk.  Roscoe  Conklin  said  he  believed  in 
the  arduous  greatness  of  things  done,  not  said.  You  believe  that.  I 
believe  that.  Let  us  act  on  it.  (Applause.) 

THE  CHAIRMAN.  Mr.  Abbott  has  come  into  the  room  and  he 
will  discuss  the  economics  of  the  coal  industry  from  the  coal  consumers' 
standpoint. 

Air.  Abbott's  address  will  be  found  at  page  224  of  this  report. 

THE  CHAIRMAN:  One  of  the  words  used  by  Mr.  Abbott  brings 
to  my  mind  that  the  Coal  Baron  started  with  the  song. of  "Old  King 
Cole,"  which  has  been  changed  in  the  changes  of  time  until  now  Coal 
Baron  is  spelled  B-a-r-r-e-n,  and  the  song  changed  from  "Old  King  Cole" 
to  "Over  the  Hills  to  the  Poorhouse."  (Laughter.) 

The  subject  is  open  for  discussion  limited  to  five  minutes  each. 
If  there  is  no  discussion  I  will  ask  Mr.  J.  E.  Finney,  of  Arkansas,- to  read 
the  paper  that  he  was  to  read  yesterday. 

MR.  LTXXEY:  It  is  not  my  purpose  to  read  all  of  this  paper,  as 
Professor  Purdue  read  a  paper  in  your  hearing  on  this  same  question.*! 
will  read  three  or  four  pages  of  this  paper,  and  the  balance  of  it,  which 
is  confined  largely  to  a  reproduction  of  the  report  of  the  Arkansas  Geo- 
logical Survey,  under  the  direction  of  Professor  Purdue,  will  be  printed, 
I  take  it,  in  the  proceedings. 

Mr.  Finney's  paper  will  be  found  at' page  233  of  this  report.- 

The  Secretary  then  read: 

Resolution  No.  11,  Introduced  by  W.  N.  Searcy,  Colorado. 

Resolved,  That,  Whereas,  The  metal  mining  industry  of  our 
nation,  including  the  mining  and  reduction  to  pure  metal  of  the 
iron,  copper,  lead,  zinc,  gold,  silver,  tungsten  and  other  metal  bear- 
ing ores,  is  of  vital  importance  to  the  national  welfare; 

And,  Whereas,  The  demand  for  and  production  of  such  metals 
are  constantly  and  rapidly  increasing,  and  the  use  and  application 
of  the  industrial  metals  are  continually  extending  and  broadening — 
all  to  such  extent  that  we  are  more  than  doubling  the  annual  extrac- 
tion of  metal  in  each  twenty  years  of  national  existence; 

And,  Whereas,  The  continued  and  unhampered  production  of 
these  metals  will  not  only  be  necessary  to  the  prosperity  of  our 
country's  industries,  but  will  be  indispensable  to  our  continued  ad- 
vance in  civilization;  our  nation  having  already  reached  the  stage 
of  progress  wherein  the  equipment  of  armies,  the  building  of  navies, 
the  maintenance  of  inland  transportation,  the  construction  of  cities 
and  the  founding  of  the  industries  themselves  are  all  absolutely  de- 
pendent upon  the  metal  supply; 

And,  Whereas,  In  the  industry  of  metal  production,  and  espe- 
cially in  the  mining  and  reduction  of  complex  ores  in  <mr  western 
states,  a  great  percentage  of  loss  of  the  valuable*,  metal  is  suffered, 
which  loss  is  apparently  unavoidable  under  existing  methods;  and 
many  valuable  metallic  and  mineral  by-products  are  also  dissipated 
in  the  course  of  ore  treatment  because  of  the  inadequacy  of  existing 
processes  to  save  such  by-products  at  a  profit; 


68  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

And,  Whereas,  This  loss  in  such  metal  production  amounts,  at 
the  least,  to  from  fifty  to  one  hundred  million  dollars  worth  of 
metal  per  year,  out  of  the  ores  extracted  in  the  western  states 
and  territories  alone; 

And,  Whereas,  This  loss  of  metal  is  in  general  irretrievable, 
resulting  in  a  substantial  and  permanent  lessening  of  the  available 
metal  supply  of  our  country; 

And,  Whereas,  The  department* of  agriculture  of  the  United 
States  has  fully  proven  the  efficiency  of  local  or  field  experiment 
station  work  in  solving  the  many  problems  of  the  farming  industry, 
and  there  is  every  reason  to  believe  that  similar  good  results  may 
be  achieved  by  the  same  system  of  investigating  and  solving  the 
problems  of  the  mining  industry; 

Now,  Therefore,  Be  It  Resolved,  By  the  American  Mining 
Congress,  That  the  President  and  Congress  of  the  United  States  be, 
and  they  hereby  are,  earnestly  requested  and  petitioned  to  recom- 
mend and  enact  such  appropriation  measure  or  other  legislation 
as  may  be  necessary  to  enable  and  authorize  the  National  Bureau 
of  Mines  and  Mining  to  make  thorough  investigation  of  the  condi- 
tion and  problems  of  the  metal  mining  industry  and  to  institute, 
maintain  and  conduct  local  or  field  experiment  work  and  research, 
and  such  other  metallurgical  and  experimental  work  as  that  Bureau 
may  deem  requisite — all  to  the  end  of  improving  the  methods  and 
condition  of  the  metal  mining  industry,  and  saving  from  waste 
and  conserving  for  use  the  metal  resources  of  our  country,  and  be 
it  further 

Resolved,  That  a  copy  of  this  resolution  be  furnished  and  pre- 
sented to  the  President,  the  Director  of  the  Bureau  of  Mines  and 
Mining,   and    each    United    States     senator     and     representative     in 
Congress. 
Whereupon  an  adjournment  was  taken  until  8  o'clock  p.  m. 

THURSDAY,  OCTOBER  25,  1911. 
Evening  Session. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Gentlemen  of  the  Convention:  The  gentle- 
man who  is  to  address  you  this  evening  is  one  who  needs  no  introduction 
to  you,  as  I  believe  you  all  know  him,  and  I  know  you  have  been  waiting 
for  him  to  come  here  to  address  you  again  this  year,  as  he  has  at  every 
mining  congress  for  a  great  many  years.  He  is  our  most  esteemed 
fellow  citizen  and  co-laborer  for  this  cause,  the  director  of  the  Bureau 
of  Mines,  Dr.  Joseph  A.  Holmes.  (Applause.) 

Dr.  Holmes'  address,  illustrated,  will  be  published  later  as  a  sup- 
plement to  this  report. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  While  it  may  seem  a  little  out  of  place  to 
call  a  man  back  to  the  platform  after  giving  us  such  an  exceedingly 
interesting  lecture,  still  we  from  the  West,  whose  sympathies  have  been 
strongly  aroused  in  behalf  of  bituminous  coal  miners,  particularly  in 
the  middle  west,  and  let  it  be  understood  we  want  to  aid  you  in  every 
possible  way,  would  like,  if  possible,  to  have  Dr.  Holmes  say  a  word 
of  cheer  and  encouragement  as  to  what  we  may  expect  from  the  bureau 
of  mines  in  the  way  of  assistance  for  the  precious  metal  mining  indus- 
tries. I  realize  that  the  work  was  started  to  avoid  the  great  loss  of 
life,  and  that  is' the  first  principle  to  be  considered  in  mining,  and  while 
the  appropriations  made  by  our  Congress  to  take  up  this  work  at  this 
time  are  inadequate,  we  fully  believe  with  the  assistance  of  'you  east- 
erners who  are  principally  interested  in  coal  and  iron  mining  that  the 
bureau  of  mines  will  get  an  appropriation  by  your  support  that  will  be 
sufficient  to  give  us  the  required  assistance  and  help.  I  should  like  very 
much  if  Dr.  Holmes  would  give  us  a  few  words  in  regard  to  what  his 
ideas  are  with  reference  to  the  assistance  that  the  precious  metal  miners 
of  the  west  may  expect. 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS       .  69 

DR.  HOLMES:  Mr.  President,  Ladies  and  Gentlemen:  I  appre- 
ciate this  invitation  from  the  presiding  officer,  and  especially  because 
of  the  friendly  spirit  in  which  it  is  extended.  It  should  not  have  been 
necessary,  however;  for  I  should  have  included  in  my  original  address 
the  statements  for  which  he  is  now  asking. 

I  am  quite  aware  of  the  fact  that  while  the  creation  of  the  Bureau 
of  Mines  was  rendered  much  easier  by  the  series  of  unfortunate  coal 
mine  disasters  immediately  preceding  it,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  the  existence 
of  the  bureau  is  due  largely  to  the  persistent  efforts  in  its  behalf  during 
the  past  twenty  years  of  the  American  Mining  Congress,  backed  by 
the  western  metal-miners.  I  am  also  aware  of  the  fact  that  there  is 
a  reasonable  basis  for  the  complaints  now  frequently  heard  in  the 
western  states  and  territories  to  the  effect  that  the  bureau  is  doing 
practically  nothing  to  aid  these  metal  mining  branches  of  the  industry 
that  were  so  largely  responsible  for  its  creation. 

But  President  Dern  has  indicated,  and  I  think  thei  members  of 
the  Mining  Congress  generally  understand,  that  the  conditions  attend- 
ing the  immediate  creation  of  the  new  bureau  are  responsible  for  this 
situation.  At  that  time  the  coal  mine  disasters  and  the  saving  of  life 
were  prope.rly  uppermost  in  the  public  mind,  and  in  the  thought  of 
Congress  in  making  the  appropriations  for  the  bureau's  first  work. 
Now  that  that  work  is  well  under  way,  I  believe  Congress  will  give 
friendly  and  favorable  consideration  to  the  needs  of  the  metal  mining 
industries,  if  these  needs  are  properly  presented  before  it. 

The  country  is  coming  to  understand  more  clearly  every  year  how 
essential  to  our  national  welfare  are  the  two  great  foundation  industries, 
agriculture  and  mining.  Agriculture  has  for  years  been  receiving  proper 
recognition  and  aid  from  the  Federal  government — to  the  extent  of 
from  $10,000,0()0  to  more  than  $15,000,000  a  year — for  the  reason  that 
its  representatives  demonstrated  the  fact  that  there  was  much  work 
in  behalf  of  farming  that  the  Federal  government  could  do  to  better 
advantage  and  with  less  of  the  costly  duplication  that  would  charac- 
terize this  work  if  undertaken  by  each  of  the  several  states  or  by 
private  individuals.  And  if  Congress  can  be  shown  that  there  are 
extensive  inquiries  and  scientific  investigations  needed  in  behalf  of  the 
mining  industry,  that  are  national  in  character  and  can  be  conducted 
to  better  advantage  by  the  Federal  government  than  by  each  of  the 
several  states  or  private  individuals  it  is  reasonably  certain  that  Congress 
will  accord  to  mining  a  generous  treatment  similar  to  what  it  has  done 
for  agriculture. 

Indeed,  the  appeal  for  national  recognition  and  aid  in  behalf  of 
mining  presents  several  advantages  over  the  appeal  in  behalf  of  agri- 
culture. The  products  of  the  mine  are  no  less  than  those  of  the  farm 
essential  to  our  national  welfare;  but  while  in  the  annual  crops  of  the 
farm  we  have  the  perpetual  renewal  of  these  supplies,  of  the  products 
of  our  mines  we  have  but  the  one  supply,  which  supply  has  required 
the  ages  of  the  past  for  its  creation,  and  it  must  meet  the  needs  of  the 
nation  for.  all  time  to  come.  Mining  is  therefore  an  industry  in  which 
in  an  important  and  special  sense  the  nation  must  safeguard  its  own 
future,  by  seeing  to  it  that  these  resources  so  essential  to  its  permanent 
welfare  are  used  wisely  and  without  unnecessary  waste. 

The  needs,  the  purposes  and  the  plans  of  the  individual  or  the 
corporation  are1  local  and  temporary.  Too  often  even  the  state  in  its 
commendable  efforts  toward  present  developments  loses  sight  of  the 
future  needs  and  future  rights  of  its  citizens.  It  is  therefore  the  right 
and  duty  of  the  nation  in  every  way  consistent  with  our  form  of  govern- 
ment, to  see  to  it  that  in  the  use  .of  resources  essential  to  national 
welfare  these  resources  are  developed  and  used  with  the  highest 
possible  efficiency  or  without  unnecessary  waste. 

Again  while  agriculture  is  the  safest,  mining  is  the  most  hazardous 
of  all  our  great  industries.  And  while  mining  is  often  spoken  of  as  an 
industry  of  ^organized  .companies  in  contrast  with  agriculture  as  an 
industry  of  individuals,  as  a  matter  of  fact  mining  is  also  in  a  most 


70  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

important  respect  equally  an  industry  of  individuals;  and  it  is  especially 
an  industry  in  which  a  single  individual,  by  accident  or  by  thoughtless 
mistake,  may  cause  the  destruction  of  scores  or  even  hundreds  of  his 
fellow  workers  underground. 

Both  the  loss  of  life  and  the  waste  of  resources  in  the  metal  mining 
and  other  mining  industries  of  the  western  states  are  far  in  excess 
of  what  they  are  ordinarily  supposed  to  be  or  what  they  ought  to  be. 
The  need  of  such  general  inquiries  and  investigations  as  will  aid  in 
developing  both  safer  and  less  wasteful  mining  and  metallurgical 
operations  is  being  fully  recognized;  and  I  believe  that  any  request  for 
the  extension  of  the  work  of  the  Bureau  of  Mines  to  cover  inquiries 
and  researches  to  meet  these  needs  in  the  west  will  meet  with  general 
approval  and  will  receive  favorable  action  by  Congress.  Meanwhile, 
I  am  sure  the  President  and  members  of  the  Mining  Congress  fully 
understand,  the  Bureau  of  Mines  must  keep  well  within  the  limits  fixed 
by  the  letter  and  spirit  of  the  existing  legislation. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  We  are  to  have  the  pleasure  this  evening  of 
listening  to  an  address  or  a  lecture  by  a  most  estimable  gentleman, 
whom  up  to  only  recently  I  always  considered  in  reality  a  metal  man, 
but  I  see  that  he  is  on  the  program  for  an  address  on  coal  mining.  No 
doubt  he  could  perhaps  tell  us  as  much  about  copper  as  he  could  about 
coal,  but  this  being  a  "coal  day"  I  presume  he  will  confine  his  remarks 
entirely  to  this  subject.  I  have  the  pleasure  of  introducing  Dr.  James 
Douglas,  of  New  York,  one  of  the  old  timers.  (Applause.) 

Dr.  Douglas'  paper  will  be  found  at  page  214  of  this  report. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Gentlemen,  I  am  sure  you  have  all  enjoyed 
the  interesting  discussion  and  lecture  of  Dr.  Douglas.  His  company 
certainly  seem^  to  have  one  of  the  most  complete  plants  among  the 
mines  in  the  southwest  and  perhaps  in  the  central  west.  I  invite  general 
discussion  of  this  subject,  which  has'  been  introduced  by  the  doctor. 
Does  any  one  here  wish  to  make  any  remarks  on  this  subject? 

DR.  HOLMiES:  With  the  risk  of  saying  too  much  in  one  evening, 
I  rise  to  speak  for  the  second  time.  There  are  two  or  three  points 
brought  out  by  Dr.  Douglas  in  his  admirable  paper  that  I  feel  we  ought 
not  to  let  pass  unnoticed.  I  have  always  had  the  feeling  that  no  one 
in  this  country  has  done  as  much  for  metal  mining  and  the  metallurgical 
industry  as  has  Dr.  Douglas.  (Applause.)  He  has  appeared  before  the 
Congress  in  an  entirely  new  role, '  and  I  think  we  are  greatly  indebted 
to  him  for  taking  us  into  his  confidence  and  giving  us  the  inside  bus- 
iness details  with  reference  to  this  great  experiment  which  he  has  been 
trying  in  another  branch  of  the  industry. 

As  one  travels  through  the  European  coal  mining,  districts  you 
are  impressed  with  the  stability  of  the  coal  industry.  You  see  mag- 
nificent steel  tipples  and  coke  ovens  of  the  most  modern  types,  and 
washeries  built  on  the  plans  which  he  has  described  to  you  as  having 
been  followed  by  his  own  company,  but  you  rarely  see  that  in  this 
country,  which  illustrates  the  {instability  of  the  coal  mining  industry  in 
the  larger  part  of  the  United  States.  Not  that  we  have  any  less  enter- 
prise, or  that  we  are  any  less  ambitious  to  have  big  permanent  stable 
plants  than  they  are  in  other  countries,  but  the  price  which  they  get 
a  ton  for  coal  averages  twice  what  we  get  in  this  country;  they  normally 
get  a  price  twice  that  of  ours,  and  they  know  they  are  going  to  get 
that  same  high  price  next  year  and  the  year  afterward^,  because  of  the 
economic  conditions  under  which  they  live. 

I  remember  hearing  Mr.  O'Brien  say  that  the  things  which  you 
can  reach  in  the  long  run  may  be  best  for  you,  but  there  is  no  special 
advantage  for  the  shortwinded  fellow.  Dr.  Douglas'  company  has  been 
most  fortunate  under  -his  management  in  being  able  to  do  things  in 
the  manner  which  he  has  prescribed.  Like  a  man  who  sometimes  draws 
a  good  salary  and  operates  a  farm,  he  can  afford  to  manage  that  farm 
in  a  way  the  other  fellow  who  did  not  have  the  salary  could  not,  and 
what  makes  his  attitude  in  this  matter  particularly  commendable  is 
the  fact  that  in  order  to  demonstrate  certain  general  facts  and  principles 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  71 

for  the  benefit  of  the  mining  industry  he  has  been  willing  to  make  the 
outlay  which  his  company  has  made.  '  There  never  has  been  a  proposi- 
tion with  reference  to  safety  that  we  have  suggested  to  Dr.  Douglas 
that  he  has.  not  been  ready  to  put  into  practice.  Usually  when  we 
came  to  look  into  it  it  was  found  he  had  it  in  practice  before  we 
suggested  it.  There  never  has  been  a  suggestion  with  regard  to  saving 
his  coal  or  operating  it  on  a  less  wasteful  basis  that  he  was  not  prompt 
to  take  and  put  into  practice. 

It  has  been  with  him  a  great  experiment,  and  it  is  an  important 
contribution  to  the  coal  mining  industry  in  this  country,  and  we  are 
most  fortunate  that  he  has  been  willing  to  make  it.  Two  things  which 
he  has  developed  there  seem  to  me  to  be  especially  commendatory,  and 
1  am  glad  he  has  mentioned  them,  one  is  the  safeguarding  of  the  lives 
and  the  other  is  the  effort  to  prevent  the  wasting  of  materials.  When 
we  talk  to  the  American  people  about  the  coal  industry  they  begin 
to  immediately  think  about  the  rich  barons,  and  we  never  will  reach 
them  except  on  those  two  bases.  People  of  this  country  are  becoming 
more  and  more  interested  in  the  prevention  of  the  unnecessary  loss 
of  life,  and  when  we  go  to  them  with  regard  to  this  great  proposition 
of  the  coal  mining  industry,  we  have  got  to  go  on  one  of  those  bases. 
That  is  the  reason  the  more  we  can  talk  and  impress  the  people  of  this 
country  with  the  loss  of  life  and  the  waste  of  resources,  the  sooner  we 
will  get  them  to  reason  and  see  that  something  must  be  done  and  make 
them  willing  to  let  conditions  be  changed,  to  let  the  coal  people  com- 
bine and  get  together  in  order  that  they  under  the  circumstances  may 
safeguard  lives  and  prevent  unnecessary  waste  of  resources  more 
effectually. 

I  certainly,  as  one  member  of  the  Congress,  feel  very  grateful  to 
Dr.  Douglas  that  he  has  been  willing  during  the  past  six  years  to 
undertake  to  carry  through  the  splendid  experiments  the  results  of 
which  he  has  given  the  organization  the  benefit  of  here  tonight.  (Ap- 
plause.) 

MR.  WILLIAM  GRIFFITH,  Pennsylvania:  Dr.  Douglas'  closing 
remarks  seem  to  me  lead  up  to  what  we  call  in  Pennsylvania  the  per- 
petual lease,  the  leasing  of  the  coal  in  the  ground.  We  regard  that  as 
one  of  the  very  best  methods  of  conserving  the  coal,  conserving  the 
interests  of  the  owners,  and  conserving  the  interests  of  the  operators 
and  providing  a  reliable  and  long  tenure  lease  upon  which  the  financier 
can  afford  to  put  money  into  a  proposition.  The  short  tenure  leases 
are  a  delusion  and  a  snare.  The  northern  anthracite  coal  field  of  Penn- 
sylvania contains  about  one-third  of  the  total  area,  but  it  ships  and 
has  shipped  for  years  a  great  deal  more  than  one-half  of  the  total  output 
of  the  anthracite  fields.  One  of  the  very  great  reasons  why  the  north- 
ern anthracite  field  is  in  advance  of  the  others  is  that  in  the  northern 
field  they  started  with  perpetual  leases,  and  in  the  other  field  they 
started  with  short  term  leases,  about  15  years,  with  the  privilege  of 
continuation  at  the  end  of  that  time.  The  .operators  took  no  stock 
in  the  promise,  like  the  one-hoss  shay,  but  built  to  last  15  years  to  the 
day,  and  no  longer.  The  result  was  we  had  a  whole  lot  of  small  opera- 
tors, poor  equipment,  and  in  the  northern  fields  where  we  had  leases 
that  were  perpetual  with  an  annual  minimum  rental  the  operators  built 
large  and  substantial  plants,  intended  to  last  as  long  as  it  was  possible 
for  them  to  last,  intending  to  bring  out  just  as  much  coal  in  one  plant 
as  it"  was  possible  to  produce.  The  result  is  that  the  production  in  the 
northern  field  quickly  ran  away  with  the  combined  production  of  our 
other  fields  in  the  anthracite  field. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Will  you  please  permit  me  to  ask  a  question? 
Was  the  lease  on  the  anthracite  region  a  lease  from  the  state  or  from 
private  individuals? 

MR.  GRIFFITH:  From  whom  ever  owned  it,  from  the  land- 
owners, and  I  see  no  reason  why  the  government  or  the  state 
could  not  adopt  a  similar  arrangement  for  the  lands  owned  by  the 
government  or  the  state.  The  courts  have  time  and  time  again  decided 


72  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

that  a  perpetual  lease,  or  a  lease  for  all  the  coal  in  the  ground,  is  a 
sale  of  the  coal  on  the  installment  plan,  and  I  can  see  no  reason  why 
the  government  as  a  land  owner  cannot  put  that  method  in  force.  That 
sort  of  an  arrangement  will,  as  Dr.  Douglas  has  suggested,  lead  to  a 
conserving  of  the  coal  and  the  introduction  of  large  and  staple  plants, 
instead  of  small,  wasteful,  two-cent  operations  that  we  often  times  have 
in  coal  fields. 

A  DELEGATE:  I  would  like  to  ask  Dr.  Douglas  in  the  operation 
of  the  underflue  oven  in  comparison  with  the  Beehive  oven,  what  is 
the  difference  in  repairs?  You  get  a  larger  output  from  the  underflue 
oven  than  you  do  from  the  Beehive,  but  how  do  the  repairs  compare? 

DR.  DOUGLAS:  Well,  the  first  ovens  we  put  up  required  con- 
siderable alterations.  The  bricks  were  not  the  best  suited  for  the  pur- 
pose, but  we  repaired  some  of  the  ovens  and  they  showed  very  little 
wear  and  tear.  The  very  best  brick  should  be  used  under  the  flues.  The 
reason  for  couching  the  coal  in  the  ovens,  as  we  do,  is  so  that  the  water 
can't  get  through  the  floors  to  the  silica  brick  and  cause  them  to  so 
degenerate  that  they  will  need  repairs.  Therefore,  a  thoroughly  good 
firebrick,  in  spite  of  the  very  high  volatile  of  our  Trinidad  coal,  is  a 
great  deal  better  than  the  silica  brick,  and  the  ovens  as  we  have  recon- 
structed them  will  require  very  little  repair.  They  seem  to  stand  the 
heat  very  well,  although  the  heat  in  them  is  considerably  higher  than 
the  heat  under  the  flue  overts. 

MR.  CARL  SCHOLZ,  Illinois:  I  want  to  confine  my  remarks 
to  one  point  and  that  is  the  fixed  charge  of  15  cents  a  ton,  which  should 
be  added  to  the  actual  labor  and  material  cost  of  every  ton  of  coal 
produced.  If  we  can  impress  the  coal  producers  of  this  Congress  with 
that  figure  I  am  quite  sure  the  coal  mining  industry  will  be  put  on  a 
good  business  basis.  I  think  we  are  indebted  to  Dr.  Douglas  for  his 
own  observations  and  for  placing  them  before  us.  (Applause.) 

Whereupon  an  adjournment  was  taken  until  10  o'clock  a.  m.,  Octo- 
l^er  27. 

FRIDAY,  OCTOBER  27,  1911. 
Morning  Session. 

The  meeting  was  called  to  order  by  the  President. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  The  first  thing  in  order  will  be  the  introduc- 
tion of  resolutions. 

MR.  W.  P.  DANIELS,  Colorado:  I  want  to  introduce  a  resolution 
that  I  hope  may  be  considered  by  the  committee  as  a  substitute  for 
everything  that  has  been  heretofore  introduced  on  the  subject. 

The  Secretary  then  read  Resolutions  Nos.  12,  13,  14  and  15; 

Resolution  No.  12,  Introduced  by  W.  P.  Daniels,  Colorado. 

Whereas,  In  the  opinion  of  the  American  Mining  Congress,  the 
effort  to  procure  appropriations  for  ore  testing  plants  at  particular 
points  is  unwise  and  will  result  in  a  conflict  of  interests  that  will 
defeat  the  object,  and  believing  that  the  use  of  any  appropriation 
for  the  benefit  of  the  metal  mining  industry  should  be  left  ta  the 
discretion  of  the  Bureau  of  Mines;  and, 

Whereas,  the  metal  mining  industry  has  not  received  the  con- 
sideration and  assistance  that  it  has  a  right  to  expect,  and  the  appro- 
priation which  it  is  understood  is  to  be  recommended  by  the  Secre- 
tary of  the  Interior,  it  is  entirely  inadequate;  therefore,  be  it 

Resolved,  That  the  Congress  disapprove  the  appropriations  for 
ore  testing  plants  that  are  to  be  expended  at  specified  places,  and 
earnestly  urges  the  appropriation  of  $1,000,000  for  the  use  and  benefit 
of  the  metal  mining  industry. 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  73 

Resolution  No.  13,  Introduced  by  Falcon  Joslin,  Fairbanks,  Alaska. 

Whereas,  The  sudden  suspension  of  the  coal  land  law  of  Alaska, 
though  undoubtedly  illegal,  and  recognized  as  such  by  the  depart- 
ments and  by  Congress  itself,  has  remained  effective  to  this  date,  and 

Whereas,  It  is  now  contended  that  the  law  shall  remain  sus- 
pended forever,  and  that  the  whole  system  of  selling  the  coal  lands 
shall  be  abandoned  and  a  leasing  system  substituted;  and 

Whereas,  Of  the  more  than  two  hundred  entrymen,  who  have 
surveyed  their  claims  and  paid  the  purchase  price,  only  thirty-three 
have  been  able  to  get  any  decision  favorable  or  unfavorable  from  the 
land  office.  The  decision  in  these  cases  was  adverse  to  the  claim- 
ants, and  whether  the  claimants  will  forfeit  the  amount  they  have 
paid  to  the  Government  and  lose  the  great  sums  they  have  spent 
in  exploring  and  development  work,  and  the  years  of  time  they 
have  given,  remains  to  be  seen;  and 

Whereas,  The  other  claimants  are  in  the  deplorable  condition 
of  having  spent  years  of  time  and  hundreds  of  thousands  of  dollars 
in  the  exploration,  development  and  purchase  of  the  lands  from  the 
Government,  and  can  neither  get  the  land  nor  get  back  their  money. 
Neither  have  they  under  the  existing  law  any  access  to  the  courts 
for  a  judicial  determination  of  their  rights;  therefore,  be  it 

Resolved:  First.  That  the  existing  law  of  the  land  in  refer- 
ence to  the  sale  of  coal  lands  in  Alaska  should  be  enforced  and 
administered  until  Congress,  the  law-making  body  of  the  Nation, 
sees  fit  to  repeal  or  amend  it. 

Second.  That  the  assumption  of  authority  by  the  executive 
department  to  suspend  and  abrogate  the  coal  land  law  of  Alaska  in 
order  to  force  the  passage  of  a  different  law  by  Congress,  or  for 
any  other  purpose,  is  not  justifiable. 

Third.  That  if  the  existing  law  is  to  be  abrogated  or  repealed, 
it  should  be  done  by  Congress  that  made  it,  and  scrupulous  care 
should  be  taken  that  rights  acquired  under  the  law  be  respected,  and 
the  faith  of  the  Nation  kept  with  those  who  have  spent  their  time 
and  money  in  exploring  and  developing  the  coal  lands. 

That  the  claimants  whose  money  the  Government  has  taken, 
should  have  their  entries  promptly  passed  upon,  and  where  found 
regular,  their  patents  issued  without  further  delay. 

That  the  law  should  be  construed  liberally  in  their  favor,  with 
the  object  of  carrying  out  its  true  spirit  and  intent,  which  was 
undoubtedly  to  bring  about  the  sale  of  the  coal  lands  and  to  en- 
courage the  opening  and  development  of  the  industry  of  coal  mining. 

Resolved,  That  it  is  the  sense  of  the  American  Mining  Con- 
gress that  some  form  of  local  self-government  be  at  once  provided 
for  Alaska. 

Resolution  No.  14,  Introduced  by  W.  P.  Daniels,  Colorado. 

Whereas,  The  American  Mining  Congress  has  placed  itself 
upon  record  as  opposed  to  fraud  and  deception  in  the  promotion  and 
sale  of  stocks  in  mining  and  other  corportions,  and 

Whereas,  Prevention  of  fraud  is  much  preferable  to  punish- 
ment after  has  been  and  is  a  practical  failure  by  reason  of  the  diffi- 
culty of  showing  fraudulent  intent,  and 

Whereas,  The  prevention  of  deception  and  fraud  by  punitive 
legislation,  it  has  been  committed,  and  it  is  the  opinion  of  this  Con- 
gress that  proper  publicity  would  deprive  the  fake  promoter  of  the 
opportunity  for  fraud  and  deception  that  exist  under  present  laws 
and  would  save  to  the  investor  the  large  amount  of  which  he  is 
continually  being  defrauded  by  the  concealment  of  facts  of  which 
he  should  be  informed;  therefore,  be  it 

Resolved,  By  this  fourteenth  annual  session  of  the  American 
Mining  Congress,  that  we  endorse  and  approve  the  bill  herewith  and 
urge  its  adoption,  with  such  changes  as  may  make  it  applicable  in 
the  different  States. 


74  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

A  Bill  For  An  Act  in  Relation  to  Corporations. 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  General  Assembly  of  the  State  of 

Section  1.  Whenever  full  paid  stock  is  issued  for  property  by 
any  corporation,  doing  business  in  this  State,  it  shall  be  the  duty 
of  the  president  and  secretary  of  any  such  corporation,  within  ten 
days  from  date  of  the  issuance  of  such  full  paid  stock,  to  file,  or 
cause  to  be  filed,  in  the  office  of  the  Secretary  of  State,  a  description 
of  the  property  transferred  to  the  corporation  for  such  stock,  with 
the  name  or  names  of  the  person  or  persons,  or  of  the  corporation 
from  whom  purchased,  the  number  of  shares  of  stock  issued  to  each 
of  such  persons  if  the  property  be  transferred  from  individuals,  and 
if  known  to  such  president  or  secretary,  the  actual  amount  paid  by 
the  person  or  persons  or  the  corporation  so  transferring  said  prop- 
erty to  the  corporation  purchasing  the  same  for  such  full  paid  stock, 
and  if  not  known,  such  statement  shall  so  state,  and  if  any  portion 
of  the  stock  so  issued  in  payment  for  property  is  donated  to  the 
corporation  issuing  it,  such  statement  shall  show  the  amount  of 
stock  so  donated.  Such  statement  shall  be  verified  by  the  president 
and  secretary  of  the  corporation,  and  with  a  certificate  of  its  filing 
in  the  office  of  the  Secretary  of  State  shall  be  published  in  any 
general  prospectus  issued  by  such  corporation. 

Section  2.  Every  stock  certificate  issued  by  any -corporation, 
which  is  not  for  stock  sold  by  the  corporation  all  the  proceeds  of 
which  go  into  the  corporate  treasury,  shall  have  printed  or  stamped 
across  the  face  of  such  certificate,  with  ink,  the  color  of  which  is 
conspicuously  different  from  that  with  which  the  body  of  such  cer- 
tificate is  printed,  and  in  letters  not  smaller  than  those  printed  from 
12  point  type,  the  words,  "This  certificate  is  a  transfer  of  ownership 
of  the  stock  represented  by  it  and  not  a  sale  by  the  company." 

Section  3.  Before  any  foreign  corporation  shall  be  authorized 
to  do  business  in  this  State,  in  addition  to  the  requirements  of  any 
existing  law,  it  shall  make  and  file  with  the  Secretary  of  State,  a 
certificate  signed  and  verified  by  its  president  and  secretary,  which 
shall  show  what  proportion  of  its  capital  stock  has  been  paid  for 
in  money  and  what  proportion  has  been  paid  for  in  real  or  personal 
property,  labor  or  thing  of  value  other  than  money,  the  price  per 
share  at  which  such  stock  issued  in  payment  for  property  was  sold, 
with  a  description  of  such  property  with  the  name  or  names  of  the 
person  or  persons,  or  corporation,  from  whom  purchased;  the  num- 
ber of  shares  issued  to  each  of  such  persons  if  the  property  be  pur- 
chased from  individuals,  and  if  knowi)  to  such  president  or  secre- 
tary, the  actual  amount  by  such  person  or  persons  or  corporation, 
from  whom  such  property  was  purchased,  and  if  not  known,  the 
certificate  shall  so  state.  If  any  portion  of  such  stock  issued  in  pay- 
ment for  property  is  donated,  to  the  corporation  issuing  it,  such 
certificate  shall  show  the  amount  so  donated.  Such  certificate  with 
a  certificate  of  its  filing  in  the  office  of  the  Secretary  of  State  shall 
be  published  in  any  general  prospectus  issued  by  such  corporation. 
Any  foreign  corporation  failing  to  comply  with  all  of  the  provisions 
of  this  act,  after  being  authorized  to  do  business  in  this  State  shall 
forfeit  such  authority  in  addition  to  the  penalties  hereinafter 
provided. 

Section  4.  The  Secretary  of  State  shall  be  entitled  to  a  fee 
of  one  dollar  for  filing  any  statement  or  certificate  required  by 
this  act. 

Section  5.  Any  officer  of  any  corporation  failing  to  comply 
with  the  provisions  of  this  act,  or  wilfully  certifying  any  false  state- 
ment in  any  statement  or  certificate  required  by  this  act,  shall  be 
deemed  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor  and  upon  conviction  thereof,  shall 
be  punished  by  a  fine  of  not  less  than  one  hundred,  nor  more  than 
one  thousand  dollars,  or  by  imprisonment  in  the'  county  jail  for  not 
less  than  thirty  days  nor  more  than  one  year,  or  by  both  such  fine 
and  imprisonment. 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONG 

Section  6.     Where  the  capital  stock  of 

business  in  the  State  of is  sold  by  any 

or  other  agent -or  promoter  of  any  such  corporation  to  any  purchaser 
thereof  for  a  cash  consideration  without  a  compliance  with  the  pro- 
visions of  this  act  in  reference  thereto,  an  action  may  be  maintained 
in  any  court  having  jurisdiction  in  this  State  for  the  purchase  price 
of  such  stock,  and  proof  of  the  failure  to  comply  with  this  act  on 
the  part  of  any  officer,  director  or  other  promoter  of  any  such  cor- 
poration, shall  be  prima  facie  evidence  of  fraud  in  the  sale  of  such 
stock. 

Section  7.  Any  law  or  part  of  law  in  conflict  herewith  is 
hereby  repealed. 

Resolution   No.   15.  Introduced  by  W.   P.   Daniels,   Colorado. 

Whereas,  The  American  Mining  Congress  has  by  amendments 
to  its  laws,  provided  for  the  establishment  of  branches  of  the  Con- 
gress wherever  fifty  or  more  members  desire  the  establishment  of 
such  a  branch,  looking  to  the  ultimate  establishment  of  state  and 
local  organizations  to  be  governed  by  a  national  body  consisting  of- 
representatives  of  such  local  and  state  organizations,  and 

Whereas,  The  present  laws  of  the  Congress  did  not  originally 
contemplate  a  delegate  or  representative  organization  with  subor- 
dinate bodies,  self-governing  within  the  provisions  of  the  laws  of 
the  Congress,  and  the  amendments  providing  for  the  establishment 
of  branches  is  not  in  harmony  with  the  original  plan  or  the  present 
laws;  therefore,  be  it 

Resolved,  That  a  committee  of  three  members  of  the  Congress 
be  appointed  by  the  President  whose  duty  it  shall  be  to  prepare  and 
report  to  the  next  annual  session  of  the. Congress,  such  amendments 
or  such  a  revision  of  the  present  laws  as  will  provide  for  a  representa- 
tive national  governing  body  with  state  and  local  bodies,  subordinate 
to  and  under  the  jurisdiction  of  the  National  body,  and  it  is  the  sense 
of  the  members  of  this  session  of  the  Congress  that  all  life  mem- 
bers of  the  Congress  who  are  or  may  become  life  members  under 
its  existing  laws,  should  be  made  life  members  of  the  National  Con- 
gress with  all  of  the  rights  and  privileges  of  the  representative  or 
delegate  members  that  may  be  provided  for  in  su-ch  report. 

MR.  J.  M.  DINWIDDIE,  Iowa:  I  have  been  appointed  several 
times  as  a  delegate,  but  have  never  been  able  to  come  until  this  time. 
We  are  going  to  act  on  resolutions,  and  you  have  no  Congress  in  ses- 
sion or  members  in  session  to  act  on  these  resolutions.  I  would  like 
to  know  what  the  result  is  when  you  act  on  them,  now  that  the  members' 
meeting  is  adjourned. 

SECRETARY  CALLBREATH:  The  official  call  states  that  the 
resolutions  adopted  by  the  Congress  become  the  platform  of  working 
operations  during  the  coming  year.  That  has  always  been  the  rule. 
Where  resolutions  are  adopted  more  extensive  than  it  is  possible  to  put 
into  effect  with  the  funds  available  for  that  purpose,  it  has  been  the 
rule  to  endeavor  to  put  those  into  effect  which,  have  seemed  to  be  the 
most  important. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  The  next  will  be  a  paper  on  "The  Future  of 
Alaskan  Coal,"  by  Dr.  A.  H.  Brooks,  chief  of  the  Alaskan  division, 
United  States  Geological  Survey,  Washington,  D.  C. 

Dr.  "Brooks'  paper  will  be  found  at  page  291   of  this  report. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  The  next  number  on  the  program  is  "The 
Development  of  Alaska,"  by  Mr.  George  Murphy,  Seattle,  Wash.  Mr. 
Murphy  has  been  callecr  away  by  telegraph,  and  consequently  that  part 
of  the  program  will  have  to  be  omitted. 

The  next  will  be  an  address  by  Duncan  M.  Stewart,  Seward, 
Alaska,  on  "Transportation  in  Alaska." 

MR.  STEWART:  Mr.  Chairman  and  Gentlemen:  My  first  duty 
is  to  express  to  you  my  appreciation  of  the  high  honor  that  has  been 
conferred  on  me  by  the  invitation  to  address  you  today,  and  if  only 


76  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

the  acceptance  of  the  invitation  did  not  involve  the  very  serious  responsi- 
bility and  heartrending  feeling  of  inability  to  rise  to  the  importance  of 
the  occasion  and  to  deal  adequately  with  the  subject  entrusted  to  me,  I 
can  assure  you  that  I  could  also  express  to  you  my  pleasure  and  my 
happiness  at  this  moment.  I  believe,  gentlemen,  that  any  man  who  has 
the  temerity  to  address  a  public  gathering  charges  himself  with  the  very 
serious  responsibility  of  saying  something,  of  delivering  some  kind  of 
a  message.  We  have  heard  a  great  deal  of  clap-trap  and  buncombe  by 
people  who  knew  little  or  nothing  about  the  subject  from  the  stand- 
point of  a  resident.  It  has  not  helped,  and  when  I  feel  that  it  devolves 
upon  me  to  discuss  a  subject  of  vital  importance  to  a  country  twelve 
times  the  size  of  the  state  of  New  York  and  whose  area  is  more  than 
the  combined  area  of  Oregon,  Washington,  California,  Arizona  and 
Nevada,  you  will  appreciate  that  my  responsibility  is  in  no  way  dimin- 
ished. Realizing  this  then,  gentlemen,  as  one  privileged  to  address  you 
as  a  resident  of  Alaska,  as  one  deeply  interested  in  the  development  of 
natural  resources,  yet  holding  no  brief  from  corporation,  court,  or  any 
one  else,  in  that  country  or  elsewhere,  I  beg  to  assure  you  that  these 
words  of  mine  this  morning  are  based  absolutely  on  facts,  and  I  shall 
deal  only  with  facts.  I  will  lay  contentious  matters  aside  and  place 
these  matters  of  actual  fact  without  the  burden  of  statistical  figures 
before  you,  so  that  you  will  get  some  kind  of  idea  of  what  we  have 
in  that  country,  and  what  we  have  to  contend  with,  and  shall  leave  it 
to  you  to  draw  your  own  conclusion,  and  see  what  we  are  going  to 
do  about  it.  With  that  understanding  I  bespeak  for  the  subject  your 
earnest  consideration  and  for  myself  your  kind  indulgence. 

Mr.  Stewart's  paper  will  be  found  at  page  320  of  this  report. 

(At  this  point  Dr.  E.  R.  Buckley  took  the  chair.) 

MR.  GLENN  W.  TRAER,  Illinois:  As  the  chairman  of  a  special 
meeting  of  the  coal  operators,  on  attendance  at  the  convention,  I  have 
been  requested  to  report  that  it  was  unanimously  voted  by  the  coal 
operators  present  to  recommend  to  their  various  associations  and  bodies 
of  coal  operators  at  home  that  they  take  membership  in  the  American 
Mining  Congress  in  conformity  with  the  resolution  which  was  passed 
this  morning,  I  believe,  and  on  the  basis  there  stated  that  they  take 
substantial  membership.  It  will  also  be  recommended  by  these  repre- 
sentatives to  their  organizations  that  each  organization  appoint  a  repre- 
sentative on  an  auxiliary  committee  to  co-operate  with  the  directors  of 
the  American  Mining  Congress  in  the  work  which  it  is  intended  to  carry 
on,  and  provision  was  made  for  a  definite  and  specific  report  to  be  made 
to  the  various  coal  operators'  organizations. 

CHAIRMAN  BUCKLEY:  Gentlemen,  I  am  very  sure  that  the 
men  who  have  been  actively  associated  with  this  organization  for  ten 
or  twelve  years,  or  perhaps  longer,  appreciate  very  much  the  action  taken 
on  the  part  of  the  coal  operators,  and  I  think  we  can  assure  them-  that 
the  Mining  Congress  will  not  only  be  of  benefit  to  them,  but  that  they 
can  be  of  very  great  benefit  to  the  Mining  Congress. 

The  next  address  on  the  program  will  be  by  Mr.  George  E.  Baldwin, 
of  Valdez,  Alaska,  on  the  subject  of  "The  Alaskan  Question." 

MR.  BALDWIN:  Mr.  Chairman  and  Ladies  and  Gentlemen:  I 
was  put  down  to  speak  on  the  "Alaskan  Question,"  but  wish  to  say  that 
broadly  speaking  there  is  no  "Alaskan  Question"  any  more  than  there 
was  an  "Ohio  Question"  a  hundred  years  ago,  or  a  "Wyoming  Question" 
fifty  years  ago.  I  shall  specifically  speak  upon  the  needs  of  Alaska. 

Mr.  Baldwin's  paper  will  be  found  at  page  299  of  this  report. 

MR.  BALDWIN,  continuing:  What  Alaska  asks  is  the  same  treat- 
ment that  has  been  accorded  the  pioneers  ever  since  the  first  settlers 
crossed  the  Alleghenys  and  went  upon  the  public  lands.  If  your  system 
has  been  a  failure  so  far,  we  don't  see  any  evidence  of  it,  because  when 
we  come  down  to  these  cities  from  the  wilds  of  Alaska,  they  look  pretty 
good  to  us.  (Applause.) 

CHAIRMlAN  BUCKLEY:  Gentlemen,  the  Alaskan  question  has 
perhaps  received  more  publicity  the  last  few  years  than  any  other  sub- 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  77 

ject  concerning  the  American  people.  As  this  matter  is  being  ex- 
haustively discussed  by  papers  this  morning,  there  may  be  others  here 
who  would  like  to  speak  on  the  subject,  and  opportunity  is  now  af- 
forded them. 

MR.  WILLIAM  GRIFFITH,  Pennsylvania:  I  feel,  gentlemen, 
like  saying  a  word  to  the  Mining  Congress,  from  the  view  point  of 
practical  mining  engineering  of  today,  with  regard  to  the  effects  of 
geological  structure  upon  the  coal  of  Alaska.  You  know  the  geological 
survey  of  the  United  States  reports  about  the  conditions  with  refer- 
ence to  the  purely  geological  question,  and  they  have  but  little  to  do 
with  the  economics  of  these  matters.  Now,  any  mining  engineer  who 
is  interested  in  the  practical  mining  of  coal  today,  who  goes  into  those 
Alaskan  fields,  will  immediately  be  impressed  with  the  very  great  and 
very  unfavorable  effects  of  the  geological  structure  upon  the  econom- 
ical condition  affecting  the  coal  beds,  and  the  result  of  all  this  is  that 
the  quantities  and  values  of  the  Alaska  coals,  especially  the  high  grade 
coals,  have  been  enormously  and  outrageously  exaggerated  through 
the  public  press  all  over  the  country,  and  we  have  been  getting  errone- 
ous ideas  in  regard  to  these  things.  After  returning  from  Alaska  after 
making  a  couple  of  examinations  of  the  Matenuska  fields,  I  was  par- 
ticularly impressed  with  the  exaggeration  that  was  going  on  through 
the  country,  and  in  my  efforts  to  try  to  stem  this  tide  I  prepared  a 
paper  some  time  ago  for  publication,  and  although  I  exerted  my  very 
best  efforts  I  absolutely  failed  to  have  this  matter  published.  Of  course, 
the  technical  journals  are  willing  to  take  articles  of  that  kind,  but  the 
newspapers  don't  want  any  articles,  apparently,  that  consist  simply  of 
unadorned  facts.  It  is  almost  an  impossibility  to  get  anything  of  that 
kind  before  the  American  people.  Now  in  order  to  bring  this  matter 
properly  and  fully  before  you  perhaps  I  had  better  read  that  paper  to 
you.  The  idea  of  this  little  talk  is  to  just  set  before  you  the  true  condi- 
tions from  the  view  point  of  the  miner  today,  with  reference  to  the 
mining  practice  of  today,  not  the  mining  practice  of  a  thousand 
years  from  today,  when  the  improvements  in  the  Arts  and 
Sciences  may  enable  us  to  mine  and  use  a  whole  lot  more  coal  than 
we  now  do  but  the  practical  mining  basis  that  Dr.  Douglas  talked  to 
us  last  night. 

Mr.  Griffith's  paper  will  be  found  at  page  329  of  this  report. 

MR.  GRIFFITH  (continuing):  Now,  it  must  be  evident  to  any- 
body who  has  considered  this  subject  that  if  it  shall  be  concluded  wise 
to  lease  the  coal  beds  of  Alaska,  that  the  royalty,  to  be  received  by  the 
Nation  from  such  leases  will  be  the  very  smallest  benefit  the  Nation 
will  receive.  The  great  benefit  to  this  Nation  and  to  its  people  will 
come  from  the  development  of  that  coal  for  defensive  purposes  of  the 
Nation  in  the  navy,  for  industrial  and  other  uses,  and  for  the  develop- 
ment of  the  territory,  the  development  of  Alaska,  and  that  small  por- 
tion of  the  royalty  that  comes  to  the  Nation  should  be  spent  for  the 
welfare  of  Alaska,  for  the  schools  and  other  useful  institutions  in  that 
locality.  I  thank  you  very  much,  gentlemen.  (Applause.) 

(At  this  point  President  John  Dern  assumed  the  chair.) 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Gentlemen,  before  proceeding  further  with 
our  program,  your  Chairman  desires  to  express  his  pleasure  to  the 
members  and  delegates  for  the  good  attendance  at  all  of  our  sessions. 
We  have  had  a  splendid  attendance,  which  is  gratifying  to  those  who  ad- 
dress you.  The  only  fault  I  have  to  find  is  that  you  are  not  prompt  in 
the  beginning;  you  come  in  a  little  bit  too  late.  This  afternoon  we  will 
be  favored  with  an  address  by  the  Governor  from  my  state  (Governor 
William  Spry,  of  Utah),  whom -we  esteem  very  highly,  and  who  is  the 
only  western  governor  who  has  given  up  his  time  to  come  all  the  way 
from  Utah  to  attend  the  American  Mining  Congress.  (Applause.)  And 
I  bespeak  for  him  as  a  personal  favor  to  me,  and  of  course  by  doing 
that  you  will  confer  it  upon  him,  that  you  will  be  here  promptly  at  2 
o'clock  and  give  him  a  good  audience. 


78  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

AIR.  PHILLIP  N.  MOORE,  Missouri:  I  would  like  before  this 
Alaska  leasing  question  be  passed,  to  ask  Mr.  Griffith  whether  he 
shares  the  opinions  of  the  preceding  speaker  as  to  the  absolute  impossi- 
bility or  impracticability  of  a  leasing  system  for  the  Alaska  coal. 

MR.  GRIFFITH:  I  think  time  leases  are  a  bad  thing,  and  prob- 
ably that  is  what  the  preceding  speaker  ref.erred  to.  We  have  found 
in  the  anthracite  coal  fields  that  a  perpetual  lease,  that  is,  for  all  the 
coal  in  the  ground,  is  one  of  the  very  best  arrangements  that  the 
operator  can  use.  It  not  only  tends  to  conserve  the  coal,  but  enables 
the  operator  to  use  his  money  for  equipment  instead  of  spending  so 
much  for  the  land,  and  if  perpetual  leases  for  Alaskan  coal  were  arranged 
for  under  the  Government  in  such  a  manner  that  they  would  not  be 
hampered  by  Government  red  tape,  I  believe  that  it  would  add  very 
much  to  the  rapidity  of  the  development  of  Alaska.  Such  lessees 
should  have  two  or  three  years  before  the  minimum  begins  in  order 
that  the  lessees  may  investigate  the  land  and  find  coal,  in  the  first  place; 
and  in  the  second  place  that  they  may  have  an  opportunity  to  build 
their  operations  and  equip  them  in  good  style,  operations  and  equip- 
ment intended  to  last  if  possible  until  coal  is  exhausted.  If  you  have 
perpetual  leases,  which  are  really  a  sale  of  the  coal  on  the  installment 
plan,  to  be  paid  for  as  it  is  mined  (that  is  what  a  perpetual  lease  is), 
that  sort  of  lease  would  be  all  right,  and  it  is  right  in  line  with  what 
Dr.  Douglas  recommended  last  night — the  leasing  of  land  with  royalty 
from  time  to  time  during  its  tenancy. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Mr.  Falcon  Joslin,  of  Fairbanks,  Alaska, 
will  now  address  the  Convention  on  "The  Alaskan  Coal  Situation." 

Mr.  Joslin's  paper  will  be  found  at  page  351  of  this  report. 

Whereupon  an  adjournment  was  taken  until  2  o'clock  p.  m. 

FRIDAY,  OCTOBER  27,  1911. 
Afternoon  Session. 

The  meeting  was  called  to  order  by  the  President. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  The  first  number  on  the  program  will  be  a 
paper  by  Mr.  Jesse  Knight,  of  Utah,  on  "Conservation  and  the  People." 
Mr.  Knight  has  requested  Dr.  Kingsbury,  President  of  the  University 
of  Utah,  to  read  the  paper  for  him. 

Mr.  Knight's  paper  will  be  found  at  page  159  of  this  report. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Inasmuch  as  Mr.  Knight  requested  Profes- 
sor Kingsbury  to  read  his  paper  for  him,  he  might  be  willing  to  eluci- 
date a  little  further  on  the  same  subject.  If  Mr.  Knight  cares  to  be 
heard  he  mav  have  the  privilege  now. 

MR.  KNIGHT:  I  am  not  used  to  public  speaking.  I  am  more 
used  to  doing  things  with  muscles  than  with  language,  and  I  will  not 
detain  the  audience  but  a  few  minutes.  I  want  to  say  a  few  words  on 
the  consistency  of  preserving  power  sites.  We  are  so  situated  in  Utah 
that  in  any  mine  in  the  high  mountains  small  streams  of  great  fall 
can  be  utilized  and  it  can  hurt  no  one  to  build  a  little  power  plant 
where  coal  is  almost  impossible  of  access.  You  can  easily  run  a  wire 
and  help  out  the  mining  industry  more  with  that  than  any  one  thing 
I  know  of,  and  along  the  mountains  a  stream  can  be  used  two  or  three 
times  and  then  drop  into  its  natural  channel  before  it  reaches  any 
possible  chance  for  irrigation.  Then  again  in  building  these  power 
plants  we  have  a  low  water  season,  and  we  have  to  make  reservoirs 
and  instead  of  wasting  the  water  it  is  all  preserved  and. consequently 
from  every  standpoint  it  is  a  saving  and  a  help  to  the  farmers.  I  have 
never  heard  but  one  objection  or  one  reason,  and  that  was  because  of 
the  use  of  this  water.  We  told  them  that  considerable  more  water  was 
saved  by  putting  it  through  the  pipe  than  to  let  it  lose  a  large  portion 
of  its  volume  among  the  rocks  and  gravel  and  that  we  would  bring  it 
down  to  the  headgate  in  time  for, them  to  use  it.  He  said,  "What  good 
is  it  when  you  take  the  electricity  out  of  it"  (laughter).  That  is  the 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  79 

only  reason  I  have  ever  heard  in  God's  world  for  preserving  it.  That 
may  be  a  good  reason,  I  am  not  mechanical  enough  to  say,  but  I  am 
suggesting  that  it  is  not  a  good  reason  and  I  will  endeavor  to  give  you 
my  reason.  From  my  point  of  view  there  can  only  be  one  reason  for 
holding  the  power  sites  off  the  market,  or  leasing  them.  For  that  mat- 
ter some  of  them  in  our  state  have  been  taken  off  the  market.  I  can 
see  no  reason  in  the  wide  world,  only  to  hold  them  until  the  big  monopo- 
lies or  the  big  combines  that  already  use  electricity,  get  ready  to  use 
them  and  then  there  is  not  any  doubt  in  my  mind  but  what  they  would 
do  just  like  the  larger  interests,  for  when  they  want  something  they 
usually  can  have  it  for  nothing.  That  is  the  way  I  view  things,  at 
any  rate.  If  any  one  here  in  the  East  can  give  me  any  reason  for 
hojding  the  power  sites  off  the  market,  why  I  am  here  to  learn.  I 
haven't  been  able  to  think  of  any  reason.  Under  the  statutes  of  our 
state  they  can't  hold  the  power  sites  unless  they  build  on  them,  and 
if  they  built  on  them  no  matter  how  many  big  concerns  built,  wouldn't 
it  be  the  means,  if  they  built  more  than  they  deeded,  wouldn't  it  be 
the  means  of  selling  power  cheaper?  If  they  were  to  build  on  all  the 
power  sites  in  the  United  States,  I  don't  care  how  big  the  concerns 
are,  it  would  have  that  effect,  but  I  take  it  there  is  no  danger  of  building 
on  all  of  them,  only  so  far  as  they  can  sell  power  and  keep  the  price 
up  to  prohibitory  use  from  the  common  people.  My  object  in  good 
power  plants  is  also  for  self  protection.  The  electric  power  that  was 
being  sold  where  I  was  operating,  in  a  mining  camp  where  coal  was 
extremely  high,  I  undertook  individually  to  do  what  I  have  already  out- 
lined in  the  paper,  and  I  don't  wish  to  take  up  much  more  time.  We 
have  so  many  better  speakers,  but  I  don't  believe  you  have  any 
harder  workers  or  better  thinkers  than  I  am.  (Applause.)  I  am  a 
pioneer.  I  have  been  in  Utah  64  years,  and  I  have  always  been  a  hard 
worker.  I  don't  propose  to  make  a  long  talk,  but  I  want  to  compliment 
the  papers  that  have  been  read  and  the  discussion  that  has  been  had. 
It  has  been  very  instructive  to  me,  and  I  see  by  the  conditions  here 
that  the  country  is  over  developed  until  the  people  want  some  way  to 
be  relieved  from  an  oversurplus  and  bring  the  prices  down,  and  I  want 
to  help  the  'Eastern  people  as  well  as  the  Western  people  in  anything 
that  is  right  and  just.  I  thank  you.  (Applause.) 

THE  PRESIDENT:  As  I  stated  this  morning  just  before  ad- 
journment, we  will  have  the  pleasure  of  listening  to  one  of  our  Western 
Governors,  the  Governor  from  my  own  state,  who  has  taken  the  time 
to  come  the  long  distance  from  Utah  to  Chicago  to  address  this  con- 
vention. The  Governor  is  a  man  of  the  people,  one  of  the  most  popular 
of  the  West,  one  who  understands  the  needs  of  the  people  and  under- 
stands the  Western  country,  and  his  subject  this  afternoon  on  which 
he  will  speak  is  "The  Public  Lands  Question  of  the  West."  I  have  the 
pleasure,  ladies  and  gentlemen,  of  introducing  Governor  William  Spry, 
of  Utah.  (Applause.) 

Governor  Spry's  address  will  be  found  at  page   138  of  this  report. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Gentlemen,  next  on  the  program  is  an  ad- 
dress by  Dr.  George  Otis  Smith,  Director  of  the  United  States  Geological 
Survey,  on  the  subject  of  "What  the  West  Needs  in  Coal  Land 
Legislation." 

Dr.  Smith's  paper  will  be  found  at  page  285  of  this  report. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  The  next  paper  on  the  program  is  a  dis- 
cussion of  the  Malm  process,  by  Col.  A.  G.  Brownlee,  Idaho  Springs, 
Colo.,  but  Mr.  Brownlee  is  very  sick  and  has  not  been  able  to  attend 
this  convention.  The  paper  will  be  read  and  discussed  by  Mr.  John  L. 
Malm. 

Mr.  Brownlee's  address  will  be  found  at  page  168  of  this  report. 

MR.  \\M.  \>.  DANIELS,  of  Colorado:  I  would  like  to  ask  Mr. 
Malm  a  question.  He  will  appreciate  the  fact  that  suggestions  pertaining 
to  the  handling  of  low  grade  ore  are  received  with  just  a  little  bit  of  sus- 
picion, and  I  would  like  to  ask  if  it  would  be  agreeable  to  you.  sir,  if  a 
competent  committee  of  metallurgists  were  appointed  by  this  Congress 


80  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

to  take  up  the  matter  of  the  Malm  process  and  make  a  thorough  and 
complete  examination  so  as  to  report  to  this  Congress  later  on? 

MR.  MALM:  In  referring  to  the  new  Bureau  of  Mines,  among 
other  matters,  that  was  one  of  the  things  I  had  in  mind,  and  we  could 
thereby  get  the  support  of  the  Bureau  of  Mines  in  the  solution  of  this 
problem  without  a  large  appropriation  or  perhaps  no  appropriation  from 
Congress. 

Dr.  Holmes  has  made  mention  of  the  fact  that  Dr.  Douglas  has 
been  in  a  position  to  take,  accept  and  install  safety  devices  as  sug- 
gested by  the  bureau  for  the  conservation  of  life  and  of  coal.  Dr. 
Douglas  has  installed  these  devices  and  has  demonstrated  their  value, 
isuch  suggestions  are  exactly  what  the  metal  miners  want.  We  do  hope 
that  the  ethics  of  the  Bureau  of  Mines  and  its  staff  will  be  such  as  to 
permit  them  to  investigate  metallurgical  methods  and  recommend  to 
the  metal  miners  such  as  have  sufficient  merit  to  warrant  their 
exploitation. 

Metal  miners  through  the  Western  states  are  afraid  of  processes 
generally.  They  would,  however,  make  possible  a  thorough  commer- 
cial demonstration  of  any  methods  which  claimed  to  solve  the  complex 
ore  problem  provided  it  was  investigated  and  endorsed  by  either  the 
staff  of  the  Bureau  of  Mines  or  a  committee  of  able  and  unprejudiced 
metallurgists  appointed  by  such  an  organization  as  this — the  American 
Mining  Congress — in  whom  the  mining  fraternity  has  confidence.  Mr. 
Brunton,  Mr.  Brownlee,  Mr.  Stuart  Crossdale  and- others  of  this  Con- 
gress, have  given  this  matter  some  thought — and  I  desire  to  say  that 
it  would  not  have  been  brought  to  the  present  state  of  perfection  had 
it  not  been  for  the  encouragement  received  from  these  men.  I  would 
most  certainly  welcome  an  investigation  of  this  method  which  I  bring 
to  you  and  would  offer  every  facility. 

MR.  DANIELS:  Will  a  motion  for  the  appointment  of  a  com- 
mittee or  a  commission  of  experts  be  in  order? 

(At  this  point  Vice-President  S.  A.  Taylor  took  the  chair.) 

CHAIRMAN  TAYLOR:  I  think  probably  it  would  be  a  question 
whether  they  would  serve  gratuitously  or  not.  If  they  would  expect  to 
be  paid  it  is  a  question  whether  the  Congress  would  have  the  funds  to 
compensate  them.  I  know  of  no  objection  outside  of  that  at  present. 

MR.  DANIELS:  If  a  motion  can  now  be  entertained  I  want  to 
move  a  committee  of  five  competent  metallurgists  be  appointed  by  the 
President  of  the  Congress  to  investigate  the  Malm  process. 

MR.  F.  M.  RYNERSON,  Washington:    I  second  the  motion. 

MR.  DANIELS:  I  believe  that  thoroughly  competent  gentlemen 
will  be  very  glad  to  serve  the  Congress  without  expecting  any  remun- 
eration; but  if  they  do  not  I  believe  that  so  far  as  the  interests  of  the 
metal  mining  industry  are  concerned,  no  money  can  be  spent  by  the 
Congress  that  will  be  of  more  benefit  to  the  miners,  to  the  entire  Rocky 
Mountain  region,  and  to  the  Congress  itself  as  money  that  it  might 
be  necessary  to  pay  to  competent  men  to  investigate  this  Malm  process 
or  any  other  process  that  may  be  brought  be-fore  us  that  promises  a 
reasonable  assurance  of  success.  If  I  may  digress  enough  to  speak 
briefly  in  regard  to  the  Bureau  of  Mines,  if  a  resolution  that  I  had 
the  honor  of  introducing  this  morning  shall  be  adopted  by  the  Con- 
gress, the  appropriation  even  though  it  does  not  reach  the  amount 
named  in  that  resolution,  shall  be  made  for  the  benefit  of  the  Bureau 
of  Mines.  I  believe  that  no  part  of  this  appropriation  can  be  expended 
with  more  benefit  to  the  interests  of  the  metal  miners  than  towards  the 
investigation  and  reporting  to  us  on  this  very  important  matter.  Mr. 
Malm  answered  the  second  question  which  was  whether  he  would 
submit  to  a  thorough  investigation  by  a  competent  commission  under 
authority  of  the  bureau  of  mines,  and  I  believe  that  the  present  director 
of  the  Bureau  of  Mines  if  he  gets  the  money  can  take  up  those  very 
things.  Now  it  is  impossible  to  test  these  processes  to  determine 
whether  they  are  available  or  not  without  some  money,  and  these 
gentlemen  who  have  the  processes  come  to  us  and  say  we  have  got 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  81 

it  so  far  and  can't  go  any  farther  until  we  have  some  more  money.  As 
I  said,  we  are  a  little  suspicious  of  Mr.  Malm  and  some  of  the  others, 
and  we  hesitate  about  putting  up  the  money,  if  perchance  we  have  it. 
If  Mr.  Malm,  or  any  one  else,  can  come  to  us  with  the  authority  of  a 
competent  Commission,  appointed  and  acting  through  the  Bureau  of 
Mines  or  the  American  Mining  Congress  and  can  say  there  is  good 
reason  at  least  to  believe  that  this  process  will  be  available,  we  are  then 
encouraged  to  go  down  in  our  pockets. 

MR.  MALM:  Our  industry  is  in  a  deplorable  condition,  if  we 
can't  get  the  contribution  of  the  services  of  engineers  for  the  investi- 
gation of  the  problem  which  is  as  important  as  fhis  one.  It  seems  to 
me  enough  metal  miners  and  metallurgists  of  prominence  and  of  ability 
ought  to  be  found  connected  with  this  Congress  to  offer  their  services. 
The  reason  I  recommend  this  is  I  believe  that  an  investigation  of  this 
kind,  working  in  connection  with  the  committee  on  frauds,  if  you 
have  such  a  committee,  would  be  of .  great  benefit.  I  should  like  to 
see  a  committee  of  the  American  Mining  C6ngress,  or  of  any  other 
scientific  association  which  is  interested  in  this  problem,  get  at  the 
facts  and  report. 

MR.  DANIELS:  I  would  just  like  to  say  if  my  motion  does  not 
include  the  investigation  of  any  process  that  seems  worthy  I  would 
like  to  so  amend  it. 

MR.  E.  L.  MARTIN,  Georgia:  I  don't  want  to  criticise  at  all, 
but  I  know  how  hard  it  has  been  for  this  American  Mining  Congress 
to  pay  even  its  Secretary,  and  for  that  reason  we  have  to  be  pretty 
careful  about  voting  to  spend  money  for  this  particular  purpose,  e'spe- 
cially  when  we  haven't  the  money.  This  is  the  only  fault  I  have  to 
find  about  it.  Our  Secretary  could  inform  us  about  our  financial  con- 
dition better  than  any  one  else. 

CHAIRMAN  TAYLOR:  He  might  be  a  little  bit  backward  about 
it,  but  I  know  the  Secretary's  salary  is  practically  two  years  in  arrears, 
so  that  he  would  likely  not  care  to  state,  but  I  think  the  Congress 
ought  to  know  that.  I  felt  that  we  would  have  some  difficulty  in  paying 
the  expenses  of  the  services  of  experts  of  this  kind,  and  yet  I  believe 
with  Mr.  Malm  that  there  ought  to  be  engineers  sufficiently  interested 
to  investigate  these  questions  and  give  the  mining  world  the  benefit 
of  their  investigation. 

MR.  J.  M.  DINWIDDIE,  Iowa:  If  we  go  on  record  adopting  this 
motion  we  certainly  will  show  that  we  are  somewhat  interested  in  metal 
mining,  and  if  we  fail  to  raise  the  money  to  pay  the  expenses  of  these 
men  and  we  can't  get  any  to  volunteer  their  services,  it  will  not  reflect 
on  our  intention  at  least,  and  I  would  like  to  see  the  motion  adopted  to 
see  what  we  can  do. 

.MR.  HORACE  J.  STEVENS,  Michigan:  It  seems  to  me  while 
this  is  a  matter  a  little  outside  of  the  proceedings,  that  we  ought  to  pass 
the  hat  and  pay  the  Secretary  his  back  salary.  I  am  willing  to  chip 
in  $10  and.  perhaps  a  great  many  others  are  willing  to  contribute.  It 
is  not  creditable  to  .us  to  .leave  matters  in  this  condition. 

Upon  the  motion  being  put  it  was  declared  carried. 

MR.  MALM:  I  should  like  to  see  that  motion  refer  to  all  processes 
for  the  treatment  of  complex  ores. 

MR.  DANIELS:  I  have  no  objection  to  any  minor  change  of 
that  kind,  that  will  accomplish  the  result. 

MR.  STEVENS:  My  preceding  remarks  were  entirely  out  of 
order,  but  it  seems  to  me  that  something  should  be  done  regarding 
this  two  years'  back  salary.  If  there  is  no  other  way  of  raising  it,  why 
can't  we  get  together  and  square  it  up? 

MR.  RYNERSON:  I  rise  to  a  question  of  personal  privilege.  I 
move  you,  if  it  is  in  order  that  tomorrow  morning  after  the  reading 
of  the  minutes  of  this  Congress,  that  this  debt  of  the  Secretary  be 
made  a  special  order  of  business,  that  it  might  be  taken  up  and  the 
debt  liquidated,  so  far  as  possible,  anyway. 

Motion  unanimously  carried. 


82  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

CHAIRMAN  TAYLOR:  We  have  a  little  time  and  I  notice  that 
we  passed  over  the  discussion  under  the  five-minute  rule  of  Dr.  Smith's 
paper.  We  will  now  hear  any  remarks  or  discussion  of  that  paper, 
if  ^there  be  any. 

SECRETARY  CALLBREATH:  Mr.  President,  I  would  like  to 
make  an  explanation  of  a  statement  which  I  think  Dr.  Smith  did  intend 
to  make.  The  statement  was  made  by  Dr.  Smith  that  all  the  money 
received  from  the  Government  lands  in  the  West  was  returned  to  the 
West  through  the  reclamation  service.  In  a  way  that  is  true,  but  it 
amounts  to  a  borrowing  of  this  money  and  not  a  payment  to  the 
West.  The  money  becomes  a  mortgage  upon  the  land  which  is  to  be 
reclaimed,  and  will  eventually  be  paid  back  to  the  United  States 
treasury.  While  the  reclamation  work  is  of  great  value  to  the  West 
it  is  hardly  fair  to  say  that  this  money  is  paid  back  to  the  West;  it  is 
loaned  back  to  the  West. 

MR.  DANIELS:  I  would  like  to  say  just  a  word  by  way  per- 
haps of  something  that  might  be  termed  as  ultra  conservationism.  It 
was  with  a  very  great  deal  of  pleasure  and  interest  that  I  listened  this 
afternoon  to  two  of  the  most  intelligent  and  temperate  discussions  of 
this  question  that  it  has  ever  been  my  lot  to  hear,  but  if  we  will  stop 
for  a  moment  to  think  that  it  was  the  violation  of  law  that  made  ultra 
conservationism.  we  will  appreciate  at  once  that  there  was  some  reason 
for  it.  I  am  minded  to  think  of  the  different  sentiment  that  is  exhibited 
in  this  Congress  from  time  to  time  in  regard  to  the  administration  of 
the  forestry  bureau.  I  believe  that  some  of  those  present,  none  of 
those  perhaps  who  read  the  report  of  the  forestry  committee  appointed 
by  this  Congress  which  was  presented  to  the  session  at  Goldfield  two 
years  ago,  will  accuse  any  member  of'  that  committee  of  being  preju- 
diced in  favor  of  the  then  administration  of  the  forestry  bureau.  That 
committee  up  to  the  time  that  I  ceased  to  be  a  member  of  it,  existed 
for  about  a  year  and  half.  It  invited  complaint  from  all  over  the  Rocky 
Mountain  region;  it  investigated  the  complaints  carefully,  and  the  net 
result  was  that  it  could  find  no  good  cause  of  complaint  against  the 
administration  of  the  forestry  bureau  that  was  not  immediately  rem- 
edied when  brought  to  the  attention  of  the  proper  officers,  except  one 
complaint  concerning  the  use  of  timber. 

Perhaps  because  there  was  no  one  to  defend  it  this  report  was 
practically  kicked  under  the  table  and  the  members  of  the  committee 
with  it,  because  the  session  at  Goldfield,  as  it  has  been  reported  to  me, 
would  not  listen  to  anything  in  the  way  of  criticism  of  Mr.  Pinchot. 
We  seem  to  have  drifted  a  long  way  on  the  other  side.  Now  this 
committee  found  what  has  been  my  own  observation,  so  far  as  the 
state  of  Colorado  is  concerned,  during  an  experience  of  about  16  years 
of  metal  mining,  that  the  great  trouble  with  the  forestry  bureau,  the 
great  cause  of  complaint  was  the  method  necessary  to  comply  with  the 
law  in  locating  and  proving  up  mineral  claims.  There  were  abuses  by 
over  zealous  employes  and  by  employes  that,  as  has  been  said,  by 
some  one,  deemed  themselves  autocrats  by  virtue  of  their  position,  but 
those  abuses  after  they  came  to  the  knowledge  of  the  forestry  com- 
mittee as  then  composed,  were  remedied  just  as  soon  as  they  were 
properly  brought  to  the  attention  of  the  proper  officers.  There  was  at 
one  time  a  rule  of  the  bureau  requiring  that  a- ranger  should  pass  upon 
a  claim  and  say  whether  it  was  likely  to  make  a  paying  mine  or  not, 
before  the  approval  of  the  application  for  a  patent.  Well,  that  was 
one  of  the  most  absurd  things  that  was  ever  thought  of,  but  when  it  was 
brought  to  Mr.  Pinchot's  attention  it  was  remedied.  There  is  no  such 
requirement  as  that  now,  and  has  not  been  for  more  than  two  years, 
and  yet  within  the  past  three  months  the  Governor  of  that  great  mining 
state  has  said  that  it  is  still  the  practice  of  the  forestry  bureau.  I 
have  no  brief  to  defend  the  forestry  bureau,  or  the  ex-forester,  but  let  us 
give  fair,  honest  and  candid  treatment. 

MR.  DINWIDDIE:  Mr.  Chairman,  have  you  a  committee  on 
fraud,  to  report? 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  .        83 

SECRETARY  CALLBREATH:  There  was  no  such  committee 
appointed  last  year. 

MR.  DTNWIDDIE:  I  notice  in  the  proceedings  of  1909  that 
a  resolution  was  offered  asking  those  interested  to  urge  both  state 
and  Nation  to  pass  a  law  requiring  sworn  statements  of  the  conditions 
of  mines.  That  was  in  connection  with  the  item  of  fraud.  It  seems  to 
me  that  they  commenced  after  the  fraud  had  been  committed.  What  I 
want  to  argue  for  and  in  the  interest  of  a  revival  of  legitimate  mining, 
is  that  there  should  be  such  a  committee  and  that  the  committee  should 
provide  that  the  public  should  Icnow  from  whence  the  land  came  out 
of  which  the  claim  was  made,  what  it  cost,  what  it  is  capitalized  for, 
what  the  promoter  got  out  of  it,  and  there  should  be  no  permission  to 
sell  promoters  stock  until  the  treasury  stock  is  exhausted.  To  put  those 
things  in  a  way  accessible  to  the  public  before  the  mine  was  sold, 
before  it  was  promoted,  would  be  a  step  in  the  right  way  to  prevent 
fraud,  and  then  when  we  investigate  we  know  what  we  are  doing.  1 
believe  that  would  revive  legitimate  mining  conditions  in  our  country 
and  prevent  promoters  from  disgracing  the  mining  industry. 

SECRETARY  CALLBREATH:  May  I  say  a  word  on  the  sub- 
ject? I  have  felt  during  all  my  time  as  Secretary  of  the  Mining  Con- 
gress that  the  subject  which  has  just  been  under  discussion  was  one 
of  the  most  important  items  of  work  which  the  Mining  Congress  could 
carry  on.  I  have  felt  that  no  effort  would  be  of  greater  service  than 
that  which  would  protect  the  mining  investor  against  unfair  promo- 
tion, and  direct  him  into  those  channels  into  which  he  might  hope  for 
a  profit.  What  the  West  needs  is  the  greater  development  of  its  min- 
eral resources,  and  what  the  Nation  needs  is  that  there  shall  be  greater 
development  of  her  gold  resources.  We  are  all  agreed  that  the 
financial  condition  of  our  country  is  fundamentally  wrong.  We  are 
through  commissions  and  otherwise  attempting  to  frame  some  method 
by  which  the  present  dangerous  condition  can  be  averted.  When 
California  produced  $50,000,000  worth  of  gold  in  'a  year  there  was  no 
money  stringency  in  this  country,  and  whenever  the  time  comes  that 
our  Western  mountains,  pouring  forth  their  stream  of  gold,  shall  again 
produce  a  proportionate  amount,  all  our  monetary  commissions  can 
retire.  We  will  have  no  further  use  for  them.  How  are  we  going  to 
do  that?  We  must  do  it  by  honest,  intelligent  development  work.  We 
must  do  it  by  the  encouragement  of  those  men  like  our  friend  who 
stood  before  you  this  afternoon  with  a  process,  by  which  he  believes 
that  he  can  solve  the  treatment  of  low  grade  ores  on  an  economical 
basis.  The  great  wealth  of  the  West  is  not  in  the  high  grade  ore  which 
we  hear  so  much  about.  It  is  not  the  Independence  and  the  Portland 
and  the  other  big  gold  producing  mines,  but  it  is  the  low  grade  ore 
where  a  difference  of  50-cents  a  ton  in  the  cost  of  treatment  or  in  trans- 
portation would  make  the  difference  between  success  and  failure  in 
management.  How  are  we  going  to  work  this  out?  By  intelligent  and 
continued  development  work  and  investigation  along  the  various  lines. 

One  of  the  things  which  the  West  needed  through  the  Bureau  of 
Mines  was  that  it  might  carry  on  to  a  final  conclusion  the  very  investiga- 
tion which  has  been  carried  on  thus  far  through  what  is  known  as  the 
Malm  process.  The  word  process  is  a  hateful  word.  Hundreds  of  men 
have  lost  fortunes  by  trying  to  develop  secret  processes  because  they 
were  not  smart  enough  to  understand  whether  the  man  presenting  the 
process  to  them  was  telling  the  truth  or  not.  Men  have  shown  by  labora- 
tory tests  something  which  apparently  looked  good  by  which  the  process 
man  seemed  able  to  take  out  of  the  ore  values  which  assayers  could 
not  find,  and  hundreds  of  men  have  invested  their  money  and  lost. 
The  mention  of  a  secret  process  is  hateful,  and  yet  we  must  not  lose 
sight  of  the  fact  that  it  is  only  through  investigation  that  better  results 
can  be  obtained.  Nature  put  these  values  in  the  ore,  and  there  must 
be  some  scientific  process  by  which  we  can  crawl  into  the  hole  which 
nature  went  in  and  come  out  with  the  values  of  all  those  metals,  ready 
for  the  market.  This  is  not  the  work  of  a  day.  It  is  the  work  of  years. 


84  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

It  is  not  a  work  which  is  going  to  cost  a  few  dollars;  it  is  going  to 
cost  thousands  and  possible  hundreds  of  thousands  of  dollars  to  carry 
out  such  scientific  investigation  as  will  enable  us  to  reverse  the  process 
of  nature.  Today  we  are  paying  thousands  of  dollars  to  the  smelters 
to  buy  coal  and  coke  to  burn  up  certain  parts  of  the  ore  and  send  it 
off  into  the  air  through  the  smokestack,  in  order  that  we  may  get  the 
residue  of  mineral  value,  often  burning  out  more  than  we  recover. 
This  enormous  waste  should  be  prevented.  Its  prevention  will  be 
real  conservation.  The  protection  of  investors  is  a  necessary  element 
entering  into  this  investigation,  because  just  to  the  extent  that  you 
have  money  invested  in  honest,  intelligent  development  enterprises  you 
will  have  the  men  back  of  the  investigations  which  will  lead  to  the 
final  result.  You  will  have  the  men  in  the  field  who  will  insist  that 
Congress  shall  open  the  door  to  appropriations  by  which  the  Bureau 
ot  Mines  can  be  authorized  to  carry  on  these  investigations.  In 
making  the  last  appropriation  we  secured  for  the  Bureau  of  Mines 
Congress  deliberately  took  out  of  the  appropriation  act  those  words 
which  refer  to  the  precious  metal  mining  of  the  West.  We  were  help- 
less. The  man  who  went  to  Washington  in  that  behalf  was  not  able 
to  go  at  the  opening  of  Congress  because  there  was  no  money  in  the 
treasury  to  meet  the  expense.  When  he  did  go  the  appropriation  bill 
was  so  far  made  up  that  it  was  impossible  to  secure  a  change.  And 
so  the  act  was  emasculated,  and  when  we  get  down  to  the  point  where 
there  was  a  reference  to  precious  metals,  those  words  were  stricken 
out. 

.The  reason  is  simple  enough.  In  a  general  way  we  all  endorse 
the  principle.  We  all  know  that  the  expenses  of  the  National  Gov- 
ernment are  a  great  deal  more  than  they  should  be.  We  know  that 
when  a  door  is  open  to  any  new  line  of  appropriations  that  it  continues 
to  open  wider  and  wider.  The  members  of  Congress  who  opposed  those 
appropriations  opposed  them  for  the  very  same  reason  that  they 
opposed  the  Bureau  of  Mines  bill.  Because  it  opened  a  door  to  a  new 
line  of  appropriations.  The  Bureau  of  Mines  bill  was  passed  at  the 
request  of  the  precious  metal  miners,  but  with  special  reference  to  the 
protection  of  the  lives  of  miners  in  the  coal  mines.  Without  the  aid 
and  sympathy  of  the  coal  miners  we  never  could  have  secured  the  sup- 
port which  opened  this  door.  We  have  the  same  fight  over  the  first 
appropriation  for  precious  metal  mining  investigations  and  we  have 
that  fight  to  make  with  our  coal  friends  feeling  no  particular  interest. 
In  the  Bureau  of  Mines  campaign  they  were  interested,  and  I  would 
like  to  say  in  response  to  something  said  on  the  floor  this  morning, 
that  the  precious  metal  miners  succeeded  in  bringing  about  the  pas- 
sage of  the  Bureau  of  Mines  bill.  I  think  I  should  say  that  the  coal 
people  spent  very  much  more  money  in  that  campaign  than  the  metal 
miners.  The  coal  miners  came  to  Washington  one  at  a  time  and  a 
dozen  at  a  time,  and  went  to  the  members  of  Congress  and  hefped  us 
get  that  influence  which  enabled  us  to  secure  the  passage  of  the  Bureau 
of  Mines  bill.  All  of  our  efforts  from  the  West  would  not  have  suc- 
ceeded had  we  not  had  their  support.  We  are  needing  their  support 
in  this  new  fight  and  I  believe  they  are  going  to  be  with  us,  but  we 
must  remember  that  this  is  personal  to  the  West,  the  coal  people  have 
no  special  interest  in  that  investigation,  and  therefore  we  must  secure 
their  support  by  some  other  method  than  by  appeal  to  their  personal 
interest.  I  believe  the  coal  people  will  stand  with  us  in  this  fight, 
but  we  must  keep  up  the  fight,  and  it  is  not  an  easy  fight. 

f  Some  people  think  it  is  easy  to  go  down  to  Washington  and  get  a 
million  dollars  for  some  worthy  purpose,  but  having  gone  through  a  few 
campaigns  of  this  kind  I  want  to  say  that  to  get  a  ten  thousand  dollar  ap- 
propriation requires  a  long,  hard  fight,  and  it  won't  win  itself.  If  we  suc- 
ceed in  that^we  must  have  the  support  of  a  strong  galaxy  of  friends  back 
of  us,  and  just  to  the  extent  that  we  make  mining  profitable,  just  to 
the  extent  that  we  secure  new  capital  invested  in  our  mines  in  the 
West,  just  to  that  exact  extent  may  we  hope  to  have  men  back  of  us 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  85 

to  help  in  this  fight.  Therefore,  the  work  by  which  we  hope  to  protect 
investments,  is  extremely  and  vitally  important,  and  I  have  felt  all 
the  year  that  it  was  one  of  the  most  important  things  we  had  to  do. 
We  had  committees  for  two  or  three  years  and  some  work  was  done, 
and  fairly  good  work  perhaps.  One  bill  was  recommended  called  the 
Pardee  law,  which  made  it  a  misdemeanor  to  misrepresent  the  sale  of 
mining  stock,  remedial  of  course  only,  and  we  believed  that  it  was  the 
best  thing  that  could  have  been  done  at  the  time.  This  law  has  been 
enacted  by  fourteen  states. 

Now  we  are  approaching  a  much  larger  field.  I  believe  that 
the  only  final  solution  is  an  entire  revision  of  those  laws  which 
authorize  the  creation  of  public  corporations.  Just  so  long  as  a  cor- 
poration may  pay  up  a  million  dollars  worth  of  capital  stock,  with 
a  two  cent  postage  or  four  stakes  in  the  ground,  the  state  has  set 
its  seal  of  approval  upon  the  opening  doors  of  fraud,  and  therefore  in 
my  judgment  this  work  is  a  work  which  will  require  experience  and 
the  complete  and  combined  effort  of  the  best  men  for  years  to  ac- 
complish. I  don't  think  it  will  be  done  by  committees  who  just  make 
it  a  little  play  spell  and  make  a  report  to  this  Congress.  You  must  have 
a  committee  that  will  work.  You  can't  expect  any  committee  on  earth 
to  look  into  these  things  and  go  to  the  bottom  of  these  things,  investi- 
gating the  conditions  in  all  the  different  states  and  framing  up  that 
plan  which  will  meet  conditions  best,  because  it  is  a  long,  hard  task, 
and  will  not  be  solved  by  the  appointment  of  a  committee.  There  are 
many  different  lines  of  work  we  ought,  to  carry  on.  I  hope  the  day 
will  come  when  we  will  have  facilities  to  carry  them  on  properly. 

MR.  DANIELS:  When  I  first  became  a  member  of  the  Ameri- 
can Mining  Congress,  almost  my  first  experience  was  the  report 
of  a  committee  on  mining  frauds,  dealing  with  the  Pardee  law, 
which  was  added  to  the  already  too  numerous  laws  on  the  statute  books 
for  the  punishment  of  fraud  after  it  was  committed,  a'nd  full  and  free 
discussion  of  the  matter  was  prevented  by  what  I  believed  to  have 
been  an  unfair  ruling.  Since  that  time  I  have  expended  more  than  $250 
in  an  effort  to  get  a  good  law  requiring  complete  publicity,  which  I 
believe  is  the  only  remedy  for  prevention,  and  I  spent  $250  of  my 
own  money,  without  any  assistance  whatever  from  the  American  Mining 
Congress.  I  presented  a  resolution  containing  a  proposed  law  to  the 
session  at  Pittsburgh,  and  it  was  there  passed  upon  without  any  dis- 
cussion, because  we  had  so  much  else  to  do  that  we  couldn't  discuss 
matters  that  were  of  importance  to  the  miners.  That  law  had  been 
drawn  up  and  examined  and  amended  and  changed  by  three  or  four 
of  the  best  mining  attorneys  in  Colorado,  among  them  no  less  a  well 
known  authority  than  Judge  Morrison.  The  committee  on  resolu- 
tions reported  on  that  law  that  it  contained  good  points,  and  they 
suggested  and  recommended  that  it  be  referred  to  the  committee  on 
mining  frauds,  and  that  it  be  affirmed  by  attorneys  and  reported  to 
the  next  session.  That  is  the  last  that  was  ever  heard  of  it  until  I 
reintroduced  it,  or  tried  to  reintroduce  it,  I  don't  know  yet  whether 
I  have  been  successful  or  not.  I  left  the  Mining  Congress,  withdrew 
as  a  member,  because  in  my  opinion  it  has  for  six  or  seven  years  been 
standing  up  in  bold  marshal  array,  with  courageous  face  to  the  front, 
drums  beating  and  marching  backward.  I  believe  that  has  been  the 
position  of  the  Congress,  and  I  believe  that  many  of  your  gentlemen 
who  will  examine  the  proceedings  of  the  Congress  for  the  last  six 
years  with  unbiased  minds,  and  with  this  particular  reference  to  mining 
frauds  will  agree  with  me.  I  am  very  glad  indeed  to  have  the  assistance 
this  evening  of  the  able  Secretary  to  the  particular  proposition  of  an 
effort  to  prevent  mining  frauds.  We  must  have,  to  rejuvenate  and 
make  our  Western  metal  mines  producing,  we  must  have  develop- 
ment work,  which  costs  money,  and  you  can't  get  the  money  from 
now  on  until  one  of  two  things  happens.  We  have  to  convince  the 
man  who  has  got  the  money  to  invest  that  we  are  honest  and  sincere, 
that  the  money  he  pays  us  will  be  put  into  the  ground  in  trying  to 


86  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

make  mines,  instead  of  into  our  pockets,  or  else  we  have  got  to  wait 
until  a  new  crop  of  investors  grow  up.  Which  is  the  best  to  do?  You 
can't  legislate  honesty  into  a  man  who  is  dishonest.  The  only  way  in 
which  you  can  make  that  man  honest  is  to  provide  that  he  must  tell 
all  of  the  truth  in  regard  to  his  proposition,  whatever  it  may  be,  and 
I  tried  for  13  successive  sessions  of  the  Colorado  legislature  to  get 
this  same  proposed  mining  law  adopted — by  the  way,  it  does  not  recog- 
nize the  sometimes  assumed  fact  that  the  mine  promoter  is  the  only 
one  who  is  dishonest,  and  the  proposed  legislation  applies  to  all  pro- 
moters whether  they  be  metal  men,  irrigation,  or  United  Steel. 

MR.  MALM:  I  desire  to  make  the  suggestion  to  the  board 
of  directors  of  this  Mining  Congress  that  it  might  be  wise  to  have 
a  board  of  engineers  convene  either  at  Salt  Lake  City  or  Denver 
before  whom  the  various  process  men  might  appear  and  submit  their 
ideas.  They  ought  to  be  invited  to  come  before  such  a  commission  of 
engineers  and  I  think  if  they  have  anything  of  merit  they  will  be  glad 
to  and  if  they  have  not  they  will  keep  away.  I  wish  to  challenge  the 
various  process  men  to  a  discussion  before  the  committee  suggested, 
of  the  relative  merits  of  the  many  processes,  believing  that  the  method 
which  presents  the  greatest  merits  will  be  supported  and  thoroughly 
proven.  I  a'm  willing  to  take  my  chances  on  being  eliminated  along 
with  any  of  the  others  if  it  will  be  the  means  of  bringing  forth  any 
method  which  will  solve  the  question. 

Appoint  this  committee  at  once,  as  it  is  the  most  practical  means 
of  arriving  at  the  solution  of  the  greatest  problem  now  before  the  metal 
mining  industry. 

Personally  I  will  be  glad  to  present  the  fullest  detail  of  the  method 
of  dry  chlorination  as  developed  by  The  Western  Metals  Company. 

MR.  H.  O.  GRANBERG,  Colorado:  I  would  like  to  ask  if  it  is  of 
sufficient  importance  to  this  Mining  Congress  to  consider  methods  that 
will  truly  conserve  metals.  I  claim  that  it  is  worthy  of  careful  and 
earnest  consideration.  I  certainly  believe  the  American  Mining  Congress 
should  have  a  committee  of  a  number  of  men  of  ability  to  investigate 
this  waste  and  the  various  processes  for  the  conservation  of  metals, 
whether  it  be  iron  or  gold,  to  see  if  some  definite  saving  could  not  be 
effected. 

Whereupon  an  adjournment  was  taken  until  8  o'clock  p.  m. 

FRIDAY,  OCTOBER  27,  1911. 
Evening  Session,  Auditorium  Hotel. 

The  meeting  was  called  to  order  by  the  President. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  The  first  thing  on  the  program  is  the  report 
of  the  committee  on  the  general  revision  of  mineral  land  laws,  by 
Mr.  E.  B.  Kirby,  Chairman,  St.  Louis,  Mo. 

MR.  KIRBY:  Your  committee  wishes  now  to  report  progress 
and  ask  for  a  continuation  during  the  coming  year.  In  taking  up  the 
matter  at  Washington  it  was  found  that  the  special  session  of  last 
summer  would  not  undertake  any  general  revision.  A  general  resolu- 
tion was  therefore  prepared,  and  this  will  be  introduced  at  the  coming 
session  this  winter,  by  our  friends  in  Congress.  It  will  be  to  the  fol- 
lowing effect: 

Committee  report  will  be  found  at  page  119  of  this  report. 

MR.  KIRBY  (continuing):  Now,  since  it  was  found  that  we  had 
to  wait  in  this  matter,  your  committee  took  up  the  question  with  the 
senators  and  representatives  of  the  western  states  affected,  and  also 
with  ^  their  governors.  Their  replies,  which  I  would  like  to  read  to 
you  if  there  were  time,  indicate  that  they  are  thoroughly  with  us  upon 
this  question,  and  that  the- American  Mining  Congress  has  had  the 
general  support  and  approval  of  the  public  men  of  the  West  to  such 
an  extent  that  many  of  them  take  the  keenest  personal  interest  in  this 
question,  so  that  we  feel  assured  that  at  the  next  session  this  winter 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  87 

there  will  be  effective  action  by  Congress  on  it.  Since  our  program 
this  evening  is  long  I  will  not  read  this  report,  but  simply  add  as  one 
of  the  explanatory  matters,  its  substance,  which  is  that  when  Congress 
takes  this  action  your  committee  proposes  to  bring  before  it  a  detailed 
recommendation  to  urge  that  they  form  a  commission, .a  wisely  selected 
commission,  authorized  to  draft  a  revised  code  for  the  use  of  Congress. 
This  commission  should  hold  public  hearings  in  mining  centers  in  the 
West  and  Alaska,  and  it  should  call  before  it  men  prominent  for  their 
knowledge  of  prospecting,  of  claims,  of  locations,  operating  of  mines, 
and  should  invite  opinions  from  the  public  bearing  upon  the  specific 
points  at  issue.  The  authorities  and  experience  of  other  mining  coun- 
tries should  be  consulted,  and  the  recommendations  of  the  commission 
should  be  presented  in  the  form  of  a  fully  drafted  report.  This,  gen- 
tlemen, is  the  substance  of  what  I  will  not  attempt  to  read  in  detail. 

MR.  HARRY  S.  JOSEPH,  Utah:  I  move  you  that  the  report  of 
the  committee  on  the  revision  of  mining  laws  be  accepted  with  thanks, 
and  that  the  committee  be  continued. 

Motion  seconded  and  carried. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Gentlemen,  we  will  now  have  the  pleasure 
of  listening  to  the  Honorable  Martin  D.  Foster,  chairman  of  the  com- 
mittee on  mines  and  mining,  House  of  Representatives,  who  will  address 
you  on  the  subject  of  "The  Relation  of  Congress  to  the  Mining  In- 
dustry." (Applause.) 

Congressman  Foster's  address  will  be  found  at  page  390  of  this 
report. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  The  first  meeting  of  the  American  Mining 
Congress  was  held  in  Denver  some  14  years  ago.  It  was  then  organ- 
ized by  the  western  metal  miners.  Little  was  thought  at  that  time 
that  we  should  extend  our  field  to  cover  all  branches  of  mining,  but 
particularly  had  organized  the  gold  and  silver  miners.  We  have  had 
many  very  successful  meetings;  I  don't  think  we  have  had  any  more 
successful  than  the  one  which  we  are  now  holding  in  your  beautiful 
city.  We  have  contended  for  years  that  the  time  has  come  when  the 
Federal  Government  should  aid  the  mining  industry  in  the  same  way 
it  has  the  farmer.  Realizing  that,  we  have  asked  and  memorialized  Con- 
gress for  years  to  create  a  department  of  Mines  and  Mining.  It  was 
not  granted  to  us,  but  eventually  through  the  assistance  of  the  coal 
miners  in  the  Middle  West  and  the  East,  with  their  influence  upon  their 
own  Congressmen  we  .have  succeeded  in  having  the  Bureau  of  Mines 
established,  which  is  the  first  stepping  stone  towards  a  department 
which  no  doubt  will  come  to  us  in  time.  I  honestly  believe  we  are 
entitled  to  this  and  I  hope 'that  the  time  will  not  be  very  far  off. 

We  have  a  gentleman  with  us  tonight  whom  it  is  a  special  pleasure 
for  the  western  miners  to  meet,  a  gentleman  of  international  reputa- 
tion, and  one  to  whom  we  are  largely  indebted  for  the  development  of 
scientific  mining  and  the  reduction  of  precious  metals.  I  have  the 
pi  CD  sure  of  introducing  the  Honorable  John  Hays  Hammond,  of  New 
York,  who  will  address  you  on  the  subject  of  "Mining  as  an  Investment." 
(Applause.) 

Mr.   Hammond's  address  will  be  found  at  page  163  of  this  report. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  It  is  indeed  very  gratifying  to  me,  and  I 
know  it  is  to  every  other  member  and  delegate  of  the  American  Mining 
Congress,  that  we  are  favored  with  the  presence  of  eminent  men,  men 
of  national  reputation  and  men  in  high  positions  of  our  government. 
Their  attendance  at  this  meeting,  their  perusal  of  what  has  been  said 
by  many  of  the  delegates  on  the  floor  of  the  convention,  give  them  full 
information  as  to  the  condition  in  the  various  fields  of  mining,  whether 
it  be  in  coal  or  metallurgical  districts.  If  it  were  not  for  the  fact  that 
you  ladies  and  gentlemen  who  are  here  tonight  are  principally  residents 
of  other  cities  I  would  almost  hesitate  to  introduce  a  gentleman  who 
is  a  resident  of  Chicago,  but  I  am  sure  a  great  many  cf  you  have  not 
had  the  pleasure  of  seeing  the  man  whom  I  am  going  to  introduce,  or 
the  privilege  of  listening  to  any  of  his  remarks.  I  have  the  privilege 


88  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

and  pleasure  now  of  introducing  the  Honorable  Walter  L.  Fisher,  the 
Secretary  of  the  Interior.  (Applause.)  Mr.  Fisher  has  recently  made 
a  trip  to  Alaska  and  has  spent  considerable  time  in  that  territory,  has 
looked  into  the  matter  most  thoroughly  and  is  prepared  to  give  us  an 
intelligent  report  of  the  Alaskan  situation. 

SECRETARY  FISHER:  Mr.  Chairman  and  Members  of  the  Min- 
ing Congress,  Ladies  and  Gentlemen:  It  is  not  my  custom  to  read  an 
address,  but  the  importance  of  the  matter  is  such  that  I  have  thought  it 
proper  to  put  my  remarks  not  only  in  writing  but  in  print,  and  there  are 
some  copies  available  for  the  members  of  the  Congress  who  may  pos- 
sibly be  interested  in  the  matter  at  the  close  of  the  meeting. 

Before  taking  up  the  subject  of  Alaskan  problems  I  probably 
should  add  one  more  definition  to  mining  to  that  which  my  friend,  Mr. 
Hammond,  has  collected  in  his  long  experience.  It  is  one  which  was 
given  to  me  in  the  West  this  summer,  and  it  fits  this  occasion  appro- 
priately. A  mine,  it  was  said  to  me  in  the  West,  is  a  hole  into  which 
more  money  is  put  than  is  ever  taken  out.  (Laughter.) 

Secretary  Fisher's  address  will  be  found  at  page  363  of  this 
report. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Members  and  Delegates:  I  realize  the  hour 
is  getting  late  and  you  are  anxious  to  get  home,  but  we  have  a  little 
more  business  which  is  of  great  importance,  and  I  beg  of  you  to  give 
us  a  little  more  of  your  time  so  as  to  finish  it.  The  next  order  of  busi- 
ness is  the  important  business  of  acting  on  the  report  of  the  committee 
on  resolutions. 

MR.  E.  L.  MARTIN,  Georgia:  With  the  consent  of  the  chairman 
of  the  resolutions  committee  I  would  move  you  that  a  rising  vote  of 
thanks  be  tendered  the  gentlemen  for  the  very  able  and  valuable  ad- 
dresses that  have  been  delivered  by  them  this  evening  before  this  Min- 
ing Congress,  Messrs.  Foster,  Hammond  and  Fisher. 

MR.  C.  O.  BARTLETT,  Ohio:     I  second  the  motion. 

(A  rising  vote  of  thanks  was  then  extended  to  the  gentlemen  re- 
ferred to.) 

MR.  E.  M.  DE  LAVERGNE,  Colorado,  Chairman  of  the  Commit- 
tee on  Resolutions:  Mr.  President  and  Members  of  the  Mining  Congress: 
Your  committee  on  resolutions  is  ready  to  report.  I  will  say  that  the 
committee  was  composed  of  energetic,  courteous  and  kind  gentlemen, 
which  made  the  duties  of  the  chairman  pleasant  instead  of  arduous. 
Before  reading  these  resolutions  it  will  be  necessary  that  this  Congress 
decide  upon  the  method  of  adoption,  whether  it  will  be  as  a  whole  or  on 
the  individual  resolutions. 

DR.  JOSEPH  HYDE  PRATT,  North  Carolina:  I  move  that  the 
report  of  the  committee  be  adopted  as  a  whole.  We  have  had  a  com- 
mittee appointed  of  35  or  40  members.  It  has  taken  every  resolution 
presented  to  it  and  gone  over  it  carefully  and  sometimes  referred  reso- 
lutions to  special  committees  for  further  consideration,  so  that  the 
report  as  presented  represents  the  work  of  twenty  men  for  two  solid 
days.  I  move  that  the  report  when  adopted  be  adopted  as  a  whole. 

MR.  H.  S.  JOSEPH,  Utah:     I  second  the  motion. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Gentlemen,  you  have  heard  the  motion. 
Are  you  ready  for  the  question? 

MR.  W.  P.  DANIELS,  Colorado:  Mr.  Chairman,  I  don't  see  how 
any  man  on  earth  can  vote  on  a  question  of  that  kind  until  we  have 
heard  that  report,  and  I  want  to  make  the  point  of  order  that  we  cannot 
consistently  and  legally  take  any  such  action. 

THE  PRESIDENT:    The  motion  is  on  the  method  of  adoption. 

MR.  DANIELS:  I  understand  it  is  a  motion  that  permits  us  to 
either  adopt  or  reject  it  as  a  whole.  It  is  absurd. 

MR.  JOSEPH:  The  report  of  the  committee  can  be  amended  as 
each  resolution  is  read,  and  then  adopted  as,  a  whole  as  amended. 

MR.  DANIELS:  I  make  the  point  of  order  against  the  motion, 
Mr.  Chairman.  The  point  of  order  is,  as  I  am  requested  to  state  it, 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  89 

that  we  cannot  intelligently  pass  upon  anything  until  we  have  heard 
it  in  all  its  parts. 

DR.  PRATT:     I  withdraw  the  motion. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  The  chair  rules  that  the  report  of  the  com- 
mittee be  read  first. 

MR.  ELI  T.  CONNOR,  Pennsylvania:  Secretary  of  the  Committee 
on  Resolutions:  The  report  of  the  committee  on  resolutions  consists 
of  resolutions  recommended  and  adopted  by  the  resolutions  committee. 
The  first  resolution,  prepared  by  the  committee  as  a  substitute  for  Reso- 
lutions No.  1,  7  and  11,  is  as  follows: 

Whereas,  The  development  of  processes  of  ore  treatment 
capable  of  handling  with  profit  the  vast  low  grade  deposits  and  mine 
dumps  of  our  mining  districts  is  of  the  greatest  importance  to  the 
mining  industry  and  to  all  related  industries; 

Be  It  Resolved,  That  it  be  the  sense  of  the  American  Mining 
Congress  that  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  be  and  are  hereby 
memorialized  to  provide  for  the  establishment,  under  the  direction 
of  the  Bureau  of  Mines,  of  a  metallurgical  experiment  ore  testing 
station  or  stations  for  the  purpose  of  devising  methods  for  the 
extraction  of  metals  from  low  grade  ores,  and  appropriate  sufficient 
funds  for  such  purpose. 

Resolved  Further,  That  the  officers  of  the  American  Mining 
Congress  draft  a  suitable  bill  providing  for  the  proper  carrying  of 
this  resolution  and  that  copies  of  the  bill  and  of  this  resolution  be 
forwarded  to  the  President  of  the  United  States  and  each  senator 
and  representative;  and  that  the  officers  of  the  American  Mining 
Congress  use  all  honorable  means  to  the  end  that  such  a  bill  may 
become  a  law. 

MR.  DE  LAVERGNE:  Mr.  President,  in  order  that  we  do  not 
have  to  necessarily  reread  these  resolutions,  I  will  move  that  they  be 
adopted  as  they  are  read.  Then  they  will  be  fresh  in  the  mind.  If 
there  is  no  objection  to  that  I  will  move  the  adoption  of  the  first 
resolutiqn. 

MR.  BARTLETT:     I  second  the  motion. 

MR.  DANIELS:  I  would  like  to  ask  the  chairman  of  the  resolu- 
tions committee  whether  the  resolution  just  read  is  all  that  there  is  in 
the  report  of  the  committee  in  regard  to  assistance  in  connection  with 
the  Bureau  of  Mines  or  appropriation  for  the  Bureau  of  Mines,  for  the 
metal  mining  industry.  I  ask  that  question  for  the  reason  I  want  to 
introduce  and  move  a  substitute  for  the  report  of  the  committee,  if  that 
is  all  there  is  on  that  subject. 

MR.  DE  LAVERGNE:     That  is  practically  all. 

MR.  DANIELS:  I  want  to  move  as  a  substitute  for  the  report 
of  the  committee,  the  following  resolution:  That  the  Congress  disap- 
prove the  appropriation  for  ore  testing  plants  that  are  to  be  located  at 
specific  places  and  earnestly  urges  the  appropriation  of  $1,000,000  for 
the  use  and  benefit  of  the  metal  mining  industry,  the  appropriation  if 
successfully  procured  to  be  expended  in  the  discretion  of  the  Bureau  of 
Mines.  I  move  the  adoption  of  the  substitute. 

MR.  J.  M.  DINWIDDIE,  Iowa:     I  second  the  motion. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Gentlemen,  you  have  heard  the  substitute 
offered  by  Mr.  Daniels,  of  Colorado.  Are  you  ready  for  the  question? 

MR.  JOSEPH:  I  rise  to  a  point  of  order.  My  point  of  order  is 
that  this  resolution  was  introduced  at  this  morning's  session  in  the 
regular  way  and  referred  to  the  committee  on  resolutions,  and  there 
acted  upon,  and  the  substance  of  that  is  contained  in  the  resolution  pre- 
sented by  the  committee. 

MR.  CONNER:  It  has  been  stated  that  Resolution  No.  1,  as 
presented  by  this  committee,  is  based  upon  a  compilation  of  Resolu- 
tion No.  1  as  originally  introduced,  Resolution  No.  7  and  Mr.  Daniels' 
Resolution  No.  11,  all  pertaining  to  the  same  subject  matter. 


c«1  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

MR.  DANIELS:  Mr.  Chairman,  I  would  like  to  be  heard  just  a 
moment  on  the  point  of  order.  If  that  point  of  order  is  sustained  why 
do  we  need  to  have  this  committee  report  to  us,  and  act  on  their  report 
at  all? 

THE  PRESIDENT:  I  don't  believe  the  point  of  order  is  well 
taken.  I  think  the  motion  offered  by  Mr.  Daniels  is  proper,  and  it  is 
up  for  a  vote. 

MR.  DANIELS:  I  wish  we  had  time  so  that  the  matter  might  be 
gone  into  fully.  I  just  want  to  say  this  as  was  recited  in  the  preamble 
of  the  resolutions  that  I  offered  this  morning,  that  if  we  attempt  to  get 
appropriations  for  specific  purposes  and  have  different  specified  places, 
we  will  certainly  fail  in  our  effort  to  get  any  benefit.  If  the  director  of 
the  Bureau  of  Mines  is  not  competent  to  take  charge  of  an  appropria- 
tion made  for  the  benefit  of  the  metal  mining  industry,  let  us  put  some 
one  in  his  place  who  is  competent.  I  believe  that  Dr.  Holmes  is  en- 
tirely competent  and  that  if  we  can  get  a  reasonable  appropriation  for 
the  benefit  of  the  metal  mining  industry  and  leave  it  to  the  discretion 
of  that  bureau,  the  present  director  of  that  bureau,  we  will  be  doing 
the  thing  that  is  for  the  very  best  interest  of  the  metal  mining  industry. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  ^  The  motion  is  on  the  adoption  of  the  sub- 
stitute offered  by  Mr.  Daniels,  of  Colorado. 

Motion  lost. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  The  motion  is  now  on  the  adoption  of  the 
report  of  the  committee. 

Motion  carried. 

The  secretary  of  the  committee  then  read  the  next  resolution, 
introduced  as  Resolution  No.  10,  as  follows: 

In  view  of  the  increasing  importance  and  complexity  of  the 
mining  and  metallurgical  industries,  the  deplorable  waste  in  mining 
under  present  methods,  and  the  great  need  of  trained  men  to  aid 
in  improving  these  conditions  and  in  developing  greater  safety  and 
efficiency; 

Be  It  Resolved,  That  the  American  Mining  Congress  now  in 
session  at  Chicago  urges  the.  Congress  of  the  United  States  at 
Washington  to  provide  for  aid  and  co-operation  in  the  maintenance 
of  mining  schools  in  the  several  states  in  a  manner  analogous  to 
that  which  has  been  done  in  behalf  of  agriculture. 

Be  It  Resolved,  That  the  members  of  the  American  Mining 
Congress  and  the  friends  of  the  mining  industry  throughout  the 
country  are  hereby  urged  to  co-operate  in  securing  the  proper  legis- 
lation necessary  to  carry  above  purpose  into  effect. 

MR.  DANIELS:  I  will  try  to  get  in  the  band  wagon  this  time  by 
moving  the  adoption  of  the  report.  (Applause.) 

MR.  JOSEPH:    I  will  second  the  motion. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Gentlemen,  you  have  heard  the  motion. 
Are  you  ready  for  the  question? 

MR.  BURROUGHS,  Michigan:  I  think  that  is  not  the  proper 
thing  to  state,  that  that  shall  be  for  the  establishment  of  mining  schools. 
I  am  not  sure  that  Congress  could  be  convinced  that  all  the  states  would 
be  benefited  by  mining  schools  as  all  states  are  benefited  by  agricultural 
schools.  I  would  be  in  favor  rather  that  the  appropriation  should  be 
made  for  the  development  of  the  mineral  industry,  regardless  of  whether 
they  are  mining  states  or  not. 

MR.  JOSEPH:  The  resolution,  Mr.  Chairman,  is  in  conformity 
with  remarks  made  here  this  evening  by  the  Honorable  Mr.  Foster. 

MR.  BURROUGHS:  Mr.  Foster  and  myself  had  a  little  talk  and 
this  very  point  came  up  in  our  talk,  and  I  think  it  would  aid  in  bringing 
about  the  results  sought  by  this  resolution  to  make  that  change,  that 
it  shall  be  for  the  development  of  the  mineral  resources  of  the  states, 
regardless  of  whether  there  are  any  mining  schools  or  not,  and  if'there 
are  mining  schools  that  the  appropriation  shall  go  to  the  mining  schools, 
naturally,  but  if  there  are  no  mining  schools  those  appropriations  should 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  91 

go  to  those  states  for  the  development  of  their  mineral  resources,  be- 
cause all  states  do  have  mineral  resources.  If  all  are  equally  considered 
in  this  matter,  we  can  probably  pass  such  a  bill.  I  believe  that  all  would 
be  benefited  by  such  an  appropriation. 

MR.  JOSEPH:  You  will  remember  that  the  first  resolution  pro- 
vides for  the  appropriation  of  moneys  for  an  experiment  station  some- 
where in  the  states  to  be  designated  by  Congress. 

MR.  BURROUGHS:     Not  in  all  the  states. 

MR.  JOSEPH:  They  might  have  a  bureau  in  every  state  if  it  were 
found  necessary. 

MR.  BURROUGHS:  But  I  think  it  is  necessary  that  appropria- 
tion should  now  be  made,  if  at  all,  for  the  development  of  the  mineral 
resources  of  all  the  states.  I  would  move  that  the  resolution  be 
amended. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Mr.  Burroughs,  the  probabilities  are,  which 
is  always  the  case,  a  start  has  to  be  made,  and  this  will  be  the  start 
the  same  as  they  have  done  with  reference  to  coal  mining  operations 
for  the  men  operating  coal  mines.  They  have  not  started  all  over  the 
entire  country,  but  they  have  started  in  a  number  of  states  and  it  is 
gradually  extending  all  over  the  country. 

The  question  before  the  house  is  on  the  adoption  of  the  resolution. 

MR.  JOSEPH:     I  move  the  previous  question. 

MR.  DANIELS:  I  rise  to  a  point  of  order  that  the  previous  ques- 
tion cannot  be  asked  for  when  a  gentleman  is  on  the  floor,  has  the  floor 
and  has  made  a  motion  to  amend. 

MR.  JOSEPH:     The  motion  to  amend  was  not  seconded. 

MR.  DANIELS:  I  will  second  the  motion  as  soon  as  opportunity 
affords  itself.  I  do  not  believe  in  stifling  debate  on  these  questions  that 
are  important  to  the  mining  industry,  and  there  has  been  no  opportunity 
as  yet  to  second  the  motion  because  the  gentleman  has  not  yielded  the 
floor  and  we  cannot  take  it  away  from  him  by  a  previous  question. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  By  the  indulgence  of  the  chair  the  gentle- 
man has  been  permitted  to  speak,  although  he  didn't  speak  to  the  mo- 
tion he  did  make  as  far  as  that  is  concerned,  but  it  is  not  the  intention 
of  the  chair  to  stifle  any  discussion. 

MR.  DANIELS:  I  would  move  to  amend  that  resolution  by 
changing  that  paragraph  or  sentence  to  read  "the  scientific  study  and 
development  of  mineral  resources  of  the  several  states  of  the  union  in  a 
manner  anala^ous  to  that  which  has  been  done  in  behalf  of  agriculture." 

MR.  DINWIDDIE:     I  second  that. 

DR.  PRATT:  I  would  like  to  say  a  word  against  the  amendment 
and  in  regard  to  the  original  resolution.  The  amendment  as  it  is  made 
brings  in  two  entirely  different  questions;  there  is  a  conflict  between 
what  the  Bureau  of  Mines  is  supposed  to  do  and  the  work  the  Bureau 
of  Mines  already  has  done.  The  resolution  as  introduced  relates  simply 
to  schools  of  mining  and  in  no  way  to  the  development  of  the  mineral 
resources  of  any  state.  It  states  in  that  resolution  that  they  shall  be 
established  similarly  to  agriculture  colleges  providing  the  states  want 
them;  they  don't  have  to  take  them;  they  don't  take  them  unless  a 
state  does  a  certain  thing  the  same  as  they  do  with  agricultural  or 
mechanical  colleges.  To  adopt  the  amendment  you  have  got  to  go  into 
a  long  explanation  of  how  that  money  is  to  be  expended  and  would 
bring  in  an  entirely  different  kind  of  resolution  in  connection  with  the 
establishment  of  schools  of  mining;  I  see  no  reason  why  we  shouldn't 
adopt  the  resolution  as  presented  by  the  committee  and  let  it  relate 
simply  to  the  school  of  mines  established  as  the  states  want  them. 

Upon  a  vote  being  taken  the  amendment  was  lost. 

Upon  a  vote  being  taken  on  the  adoption  of  the  resolution,  the 
resolution  was  adopted. 

The  next  resolution,  prepared  by  the  committee  as  a  substitute  for 
Resolution  No.  5,  was  then  read  by  the  secretary  of  the  committee,  as 
follows: 


92  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

Resolved,  That  the  American  Mining  Congress  is  in  hearty 
sympathy  and  accord  with  the  efforts  being  made  for  the  construc- 
tion and  improvement  of  all  inland  waterway  projects. 

MR.  B.  W.  GOODSELL,  Illinois:  I  am  the  only  man  here  that 
is  a  member  of  the  Deep  Waterways  Association,  and  I  want  to  ex- 
plain to  those  who  belong  to  the  great  central  west  known  as  the  Mis- 
sissippi Valley  that  I  did  offer  a  resolution  here  that  read  to  this  effect 
that  we  ask  the  co-operation  and  consent  or  assent  or  help  or  sympathy, 
or  some  word  that  would  apply  to  that,  of  this  Congress  to  what  the 
people  of  the  middle  west  are  doing  towards  a  deep  waterway.  It  was 
changed  by  one  of  the  members  to  simply  cut  put  and  undo  the  work 
that  I  had  hoped  this  great  convention  would  aid  in. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  The  question  is  on  the  adoption  of  the 
report  of  the  committee  on  resolutions  as  to  the  last  resolution  read. 

Upon  the  motion  being  put  the  resolution  was  adopted. 

The  secretary  then  read  the  next  resolution,  prepared  by  the  com- 
mittee as  a  substitute  for  Resolutions  Nos.  2,  6  and  8,  as  follows: 

Resolved,  That  we  are  in  favor  of  so  modifying  the  terms  of 
the  Sherman  anti-trust  law  as  will  permit  reasonable  trade  agree- 
ments between  competitors  in  the  mining  business,  whenever  such 
agreements  will  not  operate  to  create  monopolies,  or  result  in  undue 
burdens  to  the  public  at  large,  and  we  recommend  to  Congress  the 
enactment  of  such  laws  as  will  effect  this  purpose. 

Resolved  Further,  That  a  copy  of  this  resolution  be  sent  to 
Senator  Clapp,  Chairman  of  the  Senate  Interstate  Commerce  Com- 
mittee. 

MR.  JOSEPH1:    I  move  the  adoption  of  the  resolution. 
Motion  seconded  and  carried. 

The  secretary  then  read  the  next  resolution,  prepared  by  the  com- 
mittee as  a  substitute  for  Resolution  No.  9,  as  follows: 

Whereas,  The  brightest  and  ablest  minds  of  this  country  are 
being  exercised  to  prevent  the  gross  unnecessary  waste  of  our  nat- 
ural resources  and  to  protect  life  and  limb;  and 

Whereas,  The  present  wasteful  and  dangerous  method  of  min- 
ing coal  should  receive  most  careful  consideration;  and 

Whereas,  Much  relief  can  be  secured  in  protecting  the  lives 
of  miners  and  in  the  conservation  of  coal  by  the  more  general  use 
of  picks  and  the  prohibition  of  excessive  use  of  powder; 

Therefore,  Be  It  Resolved,  That  we  recommend  that  the  prac- 
tice of  shooting-off-the-solid  be  discouraged. 

MR.  DE  LAVERGNE:     I  move  the  adoption  of  the  resolution. 

MR.  S.  A.  TAYLOR,  Pennsylvania:  I  am  heartily  in  sympathy 
with  this  resolution,  but  there  are  some  sections  of  the  country  that  will 
oppose  this  very  strongly.  You  take  the  sections  of  the  country  that 
are  using  their  coal  for  the  manufacture  of  coke.  Their  idea  is  to  have 
that  coal  made  small  not  for  domestic  use,  but  so  that  they  will  not 
have  to  crush  it  before  they  put  it  in  their  furnaces.  I  apprehend  that 
the  Mining  Congress  will  come  in  for  considerable  criticism  at  the  hands 
of  those  people,  and  while  this  resolution  I  believe  is  theoretically  cor- 
rect, it  will  save  considerable  danger  in  the  mines,  but  whether  or  not 
it  is  too  sweeping  is  the  question  that  arises  in  my  mind.  In  other 
words,  this  same  resolution  has  practically  been  brought  about  by  the 
coal  operators,  and  whether  the  intent  of  that  resolution  as  presented 
was  to  make  it  an  entering  wedge  for  some  purpose  of  that  kind,  I  do 
not  know.  I  do  realize,  however,  that  it  will  have  a  great  deal  of  opposi- 
tion in  some  sections  of  the  country. 

Upon  the  motion  being  put  it  was  declared  carried. 

The  secretary  of  the  committee  then  read  the  next  resolution,  pre- 
pared by  the  committee  as  a  substitute  for  Resolutions  Nos.  6  and  6a,  as 
follows: 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  93 

Resolved,  That  we  are  in  favor  of  a  fair  and  just  compensation 
to  working  men  for  injuries  received  while  engaged  about  their 
duties,  one  that  will  be  just  and  equitable  to  both  employer  and 
employe,  and  we  recommend- to  the  Congress  of  the  United  States 
and  to  the  state  legislatures  the  enactment  of  such  legislation  as 
will  secure  this  result. 

Resolved,  That  the  thanks  of  this  Congress  be  extended  to 
Messrs.  John  H.  Jones,  David  Ross,  W.  R.  Woodford  and  J.  W. 
Dawson,  the  committee  heretofore  appointed  to  investigate  this 
subject,  for  their  untiring  effort  in  aid  of  the  solution  of  this 
problem. 

Resolved,  Further,  That  a  copy  of  this  resolution  be  forwarded 
to  Senator  Sutherland,  chairman  of  the  Congressional  committee 
having  this  matter  now  under  investigation. 

MR.  JOSEPH:     I  move  the  adoption  of  the  report. 

MR.  DANIELS:  That  is  a  resolution  I  guess  none  of  us  will  be 
likely  to  object  to,  but  it  seems  to  me  this  great  American  Mining  Con- 
gress ought  to  be  able  here  and  now  to  say  something  decisive  as  to 
what  is  fair  and  reasonable,  or  it  ought  to  provide  for  a  committee  that 
will  take  up  the  question  and  advise  it.  I  believe  we  are  all  in  favor  of 
any  legislation  on  any  subject  that  is  fair  and  reasonable  and  just  to 
both  sides.  The  difficulty  is  that  we  sometimes  find  a  very  great  ob- 
stacle and  a  very  great  difference  of  opinion  in  arriving  at  what  is  fair 
and  reasonable.  I  move  as  an  amendment  to  the  report  of  the  com- 
mittee that  a  committee  of  three  be  appointed  to  take  up  and  investi- 
gate the  matter  as  to  what  is  fair  and  reasonable  in  the  opinion  of  the 
American  Mining  Congress,  and  report  at  the  next  session. 

MR.  S.  A.  TAYLOR:  The  statement  has  been  made  and  it  is  a 
fact  that  the  states  in  the  Union  that  have  attempted  to  adopt  a  work- 
man's compensation  clause  have  done  so,  and  they  have  in  the  main 
been  declared  unconstitutional.  Without  stating  what  state  it  is,  I  will 
say  one  state  in  the  Union  has  adopted  a  workman's  compensation  law, 
which  has  been  declared  unconstitutional,  and  that  will  now  be  taken 
to  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States.  By  the  time  that  decision 
is  made  the  miners'  committee  and  Congress  will  know  how  to  act. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  For  Mr.  Daniels'  information  I  want  to  state 
this  matter  has  been  in  the  hands  of  a  committee  for  a  year,  and  the 
committee  on  resolutions  has  acted  upon  the  report  made  by  the  special 
committee  which  has  been  in  session  and  working  on  that  for  the  past 
year. 

MR.  DANIELS:  It  doesn't  seem  to  me,  Mr.  President,  that  that 
fully  complies  with  the  objection  or  satisfies  the  objection  that  I  made. 
It  is  true,  as  the  gentleman  has  said,  the  state  of  New  York  enacted  a 
workman's  compensation  law  which  the  state  supreme  court  has  de- 
clared unconstitutional.  I  don't  know  of  any  other  state  where  the 
compensation  act  has  been  enacted  that  it  has  been  decided  to  be 
constitutional. 

A  DELEGATE:  It  has  been  declared  constitutional  in  Washing- 
ton, and  I  understand  from  this  delegate  that  Michigan  has  also  de- 
clared the  act  constitutional. 

DR.  DANIELS:  Now  that  does  not  quite  apply  to  the  point  I 
tried  to  make,  because  we  have  a  great  many  laws  that  have  been  de- 
clared constitutional  by  our  courts  that  some  of  us,  and  sometimes  a 
very  large  class  of  us,  declare  that  even  if  constitutional  they  are  very 
unfair  and  very  unjust.  We  have  had  a  national  committee  or  commis- 
sion on  this  same  subject,  and  they  have  agreed  upon  a  report,  it  has 
been  so  stated  in  the  newspapers,  that  to  my  mind  will  be  such  a  burden 
as  will  in  the  case  of  any  material  accident  in  the  plants  of  the  smaller 
operators,  put  them  out  of  business  absolutely.  The  national  commis- 
sion proposes  to  recommend  that  the  compensation  provided  for  shall 
be  paid  by  the  employer  only,  and  in  case  of  serious  accident  what 
would  happen  to  some  of  the  little  fellows  who  haven't  got  a  million 


94  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

dollars  back  of  them  to  carry  them  through  anything  of  that  kind.  I 
never  have  been  able  to  give  the  subject  very  much  investigation,  but 
it  seems  to  me  that  the  only  fair  and  equitable  compensation  law  is  one 
which  shall  provide  that  the  general  risk  shall  be  shared  by  all  of  those 
engaged  or  interested  in  the  industry  where  the  compensation  may  be 
required.  It  seems  to  me  that  if  a  law  is  enacted  that  provides  that 
every  employer  must  pay  all  possible  damages  that  may  arise  from  an 
accident  on  his  property,  it  places  us  absolutely  in  the  hands  of  the  in- 
surance companies.  In  my  opinion,  it  is  the  only  protection,  and  I  be- 
lieve if  we  are  obliged  to  insure  against  it  as  individual  operators  or 
as  individual  corporations,  that  the  expense  of  such  insurance  will  make 
the  difference  between  operation  and  idleness. 

MR.  JOSEPH:     Question  on  the  motion  to  adopt. 

MR.  DANIELS:  I  believe  any  man  in  this  house  is  likely  to  be 
as  good  as  another  when  he  expresses  an  opposition  or  wants  to  amend. 
It  only  takes  a  vote  whether  he  shall  be  considered. 

MR.   DINWIDDIE:     I   second  the   amendment. 

MR.  DANIELS:  What  would  be  legislation  in  the  opinion  of  this 
Mining  Congress,  to  both  employer  and  employe?  I  believe  we  should 
have  some  information  on  that  point,  and  I  believe  we  should  get  our 
position  so  that  we  can  say  this  legislation  is  right  and  just,  in  our 
opinion,  and  that  other  is  not. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  The  question  is  on  the  amendment.  All  in 
favor  of  the  amendment  offered  by  Mr.  Daniels  will  say  aye;  contrary, 
no.  Motion  lost. 

MR.  JOSEPH:     I  move  the  original  motion. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  The  question  is  on  the  adoption  of  the  report 
of  the  committee.  Motion  carried. 

MR.  DINWIDDIE:  It  seems  to  me  this  Congress  is  willing  to 
vote  against  a  man  simply  because  he  opposes  the  suggestion  of  the 
committee. 

Mr.  Conner  then  read  the  next  resolution  prepared  by  the  com- 
mittee on  resolutions,  as  follows: 

Resolved,  That  in  the  opinion  of  the  American  Mining  Con- 
gress, the  mining  industry  has  been  greatly  injured  by  designing 
and  unscrupulous  mine  promoters;  that  the  stand  heretofore  taken 
by  the  Congress  against  this  illegitimate  business  has  done  much  to 
prohibit  it;  that  the  Congress  endorses  the  action  of  the  Postmaster 
General  in  his  efforts  to  prevent  the  use  of  the  United  States  mails 
for  fraudulent  purposes  and  that  it  urges  the  enactment  of  legisla- 
tion in  all  states  to  prevent  such  frauds  and  to  increase  confidence 
in  mining  investments. 

Resolved,  That  a  copy  of  this  resolution  be  forwarded  to  the 
Postmaster  General. 

MR.  JOSEPH:     I  move  the  adoption  of  the  report. 

Motion  seconded. 

MR.  DANIELS:  I  would  like  to  ask  if  the  two  resolutions  I  intro- 
duced this  morning  because  they  were  not  written  will  receive  any  con- 
sideration, or  be  reported  on? 

MR.  DE  LAVERGNE:  Mr.  Daniels,  your  resolutions  were  type- 
written, read  and  considered. 

MR.  DANIELS:     I  assume  then  they  are  pigeonholed. 

MR.  DE  LAVERGNE:  No,  sir.  They  were  considered  and  em- 
bodied in  the  resolution  that  has  previously  been  adopted.  I  think  you 
will  see  that  they  are. 

Motion  carried. 

The  secretary  of  the  committee  then  read  the  next  resolution,  pre- 
pared by  the  committee  on  resolutions,  as  follows: 

Whereas,  The  effective  and  meritorius  work  of  the  American 
Mining  Congress  has  escaped  the  attention  of  a  vast  number  of 
interests  that  should  be  benefited  thereby;  and 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  95 

Whereas,  The  public  at  large  are  directly  or  indirectly  affected 
by  the  carrying  out  of  the  undertakings  of,  this  Congress; 

Be  It  Therefore  Resolved,  That  we  recommend  that  a  pub- 
licity committee  should  be  created  in  the  following  manner,  to-wit: 
One  member  from  each  state  represented  be  appointed  by  the 
president  upon  recommendation  of  the  delegates  from  state  in  which 
he  lives,  and  these  members  so  selected  shall  each  select  four  other 
members  from  among  the  different  mining  industries  in  his  state. 
The  member  in  each  state  appointed  by  the  president,  together  with 
the  four  members  he  may  appoint,  shall  constitute  a  state  commit- 
tee through  whom  all  matters  of  publicity  shall  be  conducted.  The 
secretary  of  the  American  Mining  Congress  shall  furnish  the  state 
committee  with  all  necessary  stationery,  stamps  and  stenographic 
expenses  as  the  committee  may  require. 

MR.  DANIELS:  Mr.  Chairman,  I  move  the  adoption  of  that  reso- 
lution, and  for  fear  that  I  will  be  too  late  I  want  to  give  notice  that  I 
want  to  move  an  amendment. 

MR.  JOSEPH':     I  second  the  motion. 

MR.  DINWIDDIE:  I  understand  this  question  received  consid- 
erable attention  at  the  hands  of  the  committee,  and  I  want  to  con- 
gratulate the  committee  on  their  success  in  preventing  publicity  in  this 
city.  I  want  to  condemn  this  city  somewhat  for  not  giving  some  atten- 
tion to  this  Congress",  a  Congress  that  is  worth  as  much  to  the  country 
as  this  is  certainly  is  deserving  of  at  least  as  much  mention  as  is  the 
man  who  is  to  address  it.  I  say  that  is  not  the  proper  treatment  of  a 
Congress  of  this  importance. 

MR.  JOSEPH:  Mr.  Chairman,  for  the  benefit  of  the  gentleman 
and  the  other  members  of  the  Congress  I  will  say  that  your  committee 
has  dealt  with  that  proposition  in  a  sort  of  negative  way,  and  a  resolu- 
tion will  be  read  here  in  a  few  moments,  and  if  the  gentleman  desires  to 
amend  it  some  of  us  may  second  the  amendment. 

MR.  JOHN  MAYER,  Missouri:  I  think  that  resolution  ought  to 
be  adopted  as  it  is.  I  don't  think  we  ought  to  find  any  fault  with  the 
resolutions  committee  or  the  publicity  committee. 

MR.  DANIELS:  I  would  like  to  state  my  amendment.  Possibly 
it  will  apply  more  appropriately  to  the  resolution  that  is  to  come  later. 
I  wish  to  move  to  amend  this  resolution  as  follows:  "That  the  Amer- 
ican Mining  Congress  send  its'  thanks  to  the  press  of  Chicago  for  the 
extremely  thorough  manner  in  which  they  have  reported  the  proceed- 
ings of  the  Congress  for  the  enlightenment  of  the  reading  public." 

MR.  JOSEPH:  I.  rise  to  a  point  of  order.  That  has  nothing  to 
do  with  the  subject  matter  of  this  resolution  at  all. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  I  think  the  point  of  order  is  well  taken. 
The  motion  is  on  the  adoption  of  the  report  of  the  committee. 

Motion   carried. 

The  secretary  of  the  committee  then  read  the  next  resolution  pre- 
.  pared  by  the  committee  on  resolutions,  as  follows: 

We  have  viewed  with  extreme  gratification  and  gratitude  the 
hospitality  and  good  fellowship  extended  by  the  citizens  of  Chicago 
to  our  members  and  delegates  and  their  families,  and  we  herewith 
tender  thanks  to  the  State  of  Illinois,  its  Governor,  the  City  of 
Chicago,  its  Mayor  and  others  who  have  so  royally  welcomed  us 
and  made  our  sojourn  here  so  pleasant  as  well  as  profitable. 

We  especially  appreciate  the  hospitality  and  good  fellowship 
of  the  local  executive  committee  and  narticularly  of  Messrs.  C.  M. 
Moderwell,  E.  T.  Bent  and  George  Holmes  Cushing,  who  have  by 
their  untiring  efforts  added  much  to  the  pleasure  and  profit  of  our 
visit. 

We  also  wish  to  express  our  appreciation  of  the  many  cour- 
tesies extended  the  members  and  delegates  to  the  Congress  by  the 
management  of  the  Hotel  La  Salle  and  the  Auditorium  Hotel. 


^  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

We  especially  commend  the  efforts  of  the  technical  and  trade 
journals,  International  News  service,  the  United  Press  and  the 
Associated  Press,  the  Chicago  Daily  Post,  the  Chicago  Daily  News 
and  the  Chicago  Journal  in  according  publicity  to  the  proceedings 
of  this  Congress. 

MR.  BARTLETT:     I  move  the  adoption  of  the  resolution. 

DR.  PRATT:  I  move  that  an  amendment  be  made  to  this  resolu- 
tion to  the  effect  that  a  vote  of  thanks  or  recognition  be  also  given  to 
the  management  of  the  Hotel  La  Salle  and  the  Auditorium  Hotel  for 
many  courtesies  extended  in  connection  with  the  Congress. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  The  secretary  will  make  that  correction  in 
the  resolution. 

MR.  GOODSELL:  Just  one  word  in  explanation.  Being  a  resi- 
dent of  Chicago  and  being  a  reader  of  all  the  newspapers,  I  want  to 
state  one  thing  that  may  break  a  cloud  that  seems  to  hang  over  the 
papers.  As  a  delegate  to  the  great  deep  waterways  convention  held 
here  two  weeks  ago,  the  Tribune  and  the  other  papers  gave  the  formal 
notices  in  a  very  slight  way  until  the  convention  broke  up,  at  which 
time  it  gave,  I  remember  now  the  Tribune  gave  four  or  five  columns,  a 
general  writeup,  that  could  not  have  been  done  by  piecemeal. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  I  think  our  technical  press,  for  instance, 
the  Black  Diamond,  Fuel,  and  the  Mining  World  deserve  a  great  deal 
of  credit  for  the  courtesies  they  have  shown  us.  I- believe  special  men- 
tion should  be  made  of  those  papers. 

MR.  BARTLETT:  The  technical  press  ought  to  include  Mines 
Minerals  and  all  of  those  papers,  for  they  have  spent  lots  of  money  and 
they  have  been  working  night  and  day  to  get  their  papers  out  by  Satur- 
day morning.  If  we  are  going  to  say  anything  about  papers  let  us  not 
omit  those  technical  trade  papers. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  With  the  unanimous  consent  of  those  pres- 
ent the  Secretary  will  be  requested  to  make  the  proper  amendment 
recognizing  the  technical  papers  and  the  hotels. 

MR.  S.  A.  TAYLOR:  I  feel  while  the  committee  has  mentioned 
the  executive  committee,  that  there  are  two  or  three  men  who  ought 
to  receive  special  mention  in  this  connection.  Mr.  Bent  and  Mr.  Moder- 
well  and  Mr.  Gushing  have  worked  untiringly  in  this  matter,  and  I 
know  that  it  is  only  an  oversight  in  the  mention  of  those  names. 

Motion  unanimously  carried. 

The  secretary  of  the  committee  then  read  the  next  resolution  pre- 
pared by  the  committee  on  resolutions,  as  follows: 

Resolved,  That  this  Congress  disapproves  of  the  efforts  of 
interested  parties  to  have  established  national  parks  on  the  public 
domain  wherein  are  known  to  exist  deposits  of  oil,  coal  and  other 
mineral  wealth. 

MR.  JOSEPH:     I  move  the  adoption  of  the  report. 

Motion  seconded  and  carried. 

The  secretary  of  the  committee  then  read  the  next  resolution,  pre- 
pared by  the  committee  as  a  substitute  for  Resolutions  Nos.  3  and  13,  as 
follows: 

Resolved,  That  the  American  Mining  Congress  urges  upon 
the  Congress  of  the  United  States  the  importance  of  enacting,  at 
its  approaching  session,  such  legislation  as  will  bring  about  the 
opening  up  and  operation  of  coal  mines  in  Alaska,  on  such  basis  as 
may  be  best  for  both  the  present  and  permanent  welfare  of  the 
Alaskan  people. 

Resolved,  That  the  president  of  the  American  Mining  Con- 
gress, appoints  a  committee  of  five  to  co-operate  with  the  Honorable 
Secretary  of  the  Interior  in  securing  the  enactment  by  the  Con- 
gress of  the  United  States,  of  such  legislation  as  will  best  and  most 
promptly  accomplish  the  above  purpose. 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  97 

MR.  G.  McM.  ROSS,  California:  As  a  western  metal  miner  and  as 
a  member  of  the  committee  on  resolutions,  I  wish  to  express  my  regret 
that  the  committee  had  not  heard  the  address  of  the  Secretary  of  the 
Interior  before  they  adopted  this  resolution.  Had  we  done  so,  speaking 
for  myself,  I  certainly  would  have  endeavored  to  have  had  the  great 
benefits  promised  from  government  control  extended  to  a  larger  and 
more  populous  territory  than  Alaska.  I  personally  would  have  en- 
deavored to  have  had  an  experiment  tried  in  Illinois  of  governmental 
control,  such  as  was  suggested  by  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior. 
Motion  carried. 

The  secretary  of  the  committee  then  read  the  next  resolution  pre- 
pared by  the  committee  on  resolutions,  as  follows: 

Whereas,  Since  our  meeting  a  year  ago  a  number  of  mem- 
bers conspicuously  identified  with  the  work  of  this  Congress  have 
departed  this  life,  among  whom  was  prominent  George  W.  E.  Dor- 
sey,  of  Utah,  who  at  the  time  of  his  death  was  a  director  in  this 
organization — a  man  possessed  of  a  kind  and  lovable  character  and 
to  whose  personal  interest  and  effort  is  due  the  success  of  much  of 
the  work  of  this  body: 

Therefore,  Be  It  Resolved,  That  to  the  family  and  friends  and 
loved  ones  of  those  who  have  passed  away,  the  earnest  sympathy 
of  this  Congress  is  extended,  and 

Resolved,  Further,  That  a  copy  of  this  resolution  be  for- 
warded to  Mrs.  Dorsey. 

MR.  BARTLETT:     I  move  the  adoption  of  the  resolution. 
Motion  carried. 

MR.  CONNER:  Now,  Mr.  Chairman,  I  have  read  all  the  resolu- 
tions that  were  acted  upon  or  prepared  by  the  resolutions  committee.  I 
desire  to  now  present  the  resolution  passed  by  the  delegates  from  Penn- 
sylvania. 

The  secretary  then  read  the  resolution,  as  follows: 

Whereas,  The  American  Mining  Congress  was  largely  in- 
strumental in  inducing  the  government  of  the  United  States  to 
create  a  Bureau  of  Mines; 

Resolved,  That  the  Mining  Congress  takes  this  occasion  to 
express  its  thanks  to  the  President  and  Congress  of  the  United 
States  for  the  creation  of  said  Bureau  of  Mines  and  its  high  com- 
mendation of  the  work  so  far  accomplished  under  the  able  direction 
of  Dr.  J.  A.  Holmes;  and 

Resolved,  Further,     That  the  Secretary  is  instructed  to  trans- 
mit  to   the    Hon.    William    Howard   Taft,   President   of   the    United 
States,  the  Hon.  James  T.   Sherman,  President  of  the  Senate,  and 
the  Hon.  Champ   Clark,   Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives, 
and  also  to  Dr.  Holmes,  copies  of  this  resolution. 
MR.   ROSS:     I  move  the  adoption  of  the  resolution. 
Motion  unanimously  carried. 

MR.  ROSS:  I  would  like  to  move,  if  it  is  in  order,  that  a  vote  of 
thanks  be  tendered  the  presiding  officers  and  our  secretary  and  such 
other  officers  of  the  convention  who  so  ably  conducted  its  affairs. 

MR.   BURROUGHS:     I   second  the  motion. 

MR.  JOSEPH:  I  will  put  the  motion.  The  motion  is  that  a  vote 
of  thanks  be  extended  to  all  the  gentlemen  who  so  ably  conducted  the 
affairs  of  this  Congress  and  brought  it  to  such  a  successful  conclusion. 

Motion  unanimously  carried. 

MR.  E.  C.  WETHERLY,  Colorado:  I  dropped  into  camp  rather 
late  this  morning.  The  failure  of  the  papers  to  give  me  any  information 
forces  me  to  ask  whether  the  committee  on  smelting  rates  and  ore  treat- 
ment and  freight  rates  has  had  anything  to  report  that  could  be  em- 
bodied in  a  resolution.  Four  years  ago  a  gentleman  was  very  active  in 
taking  up  their  question  of  smelting  rates  and  ore  treatment,  and  since 
that  time  we  have  heard  nothing  at  all. 


98  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

MR.  JOSEPH:  I  suppose  the  gentleman's  remarks  were  directed 
at  me.  I  want  to  say  the  committee  of  two  or  three  years  ago,  if  the 
gentleman  will  turn  back  to  the  report,  consisted  of  Mr.  De  LaVergne, 
myself,  Judge  Colburn  and  Mr.  Riter.  The  committee  met  in  Denver 
and  formulated  a  public  protest  which  was  brought  before  this  Con- 
gress, an  open  protest  against  the  exorbitant  smelting  rates  that  were 
then  in  existence,  and  we  recommended  at  that  time  that  the  method  by 
which  that  problem  could  be  met  would  be  by  the  establishment  of  inde- 
pendent smelters,  and  we  were  fortunate  enough  in  our  state  to  have  a 
man  public-spirited  enough,  a  member  of  this  Congress,  Jesse  Knight, 
who  put  in  some  $400,000  into  an  independent  smelter  in  Utah.  While 
it  has  proved  a  financial  failure  as  far  as  Mr.  Knight  was  concerned,  it 
had  this  effect:  It  brought  down  smelting  rates  from  the  large  corpora- 
tions, and  as  far  as  the  report  of  the  committee  on  ore  returns  was  con- 
cerned, I  want  to  say  that  I  was  appointed  on  that  committee  in  the 
convention  and  Mr.  MacVichie,  of  Salt  Lake,  and  Mr.  Becker,  of  Los 
Angeles,  and  we  failed  to  hold  a  meeting  because  we  could  not  make 
connections  with  one  another.  We  made*  our  report  but  I  have  not  seen 
it.  I  suppose  it  was  lost  in  the  shuffle.  As  far  as  Mr.  MacVichie  and 
myself  were  concerned,  we  submitted  our  report  to  Mr.  Becker,  and  it 
may  be  that  Mr.  Becker  failed  to  bring  it  in. 

MR.   S.  A.  TAYLOR:     We  have  voted  on  the  resolutions,  and  I 
think  before  adjourning  we  ought  to  pass  a  vote  of  thanks  to  the  men 
who  spent  two  days  in  getting  them  up.     Therefore,  I  move  a  vote  of 
thanks  be  given  the  resolutions  committee. 
Motion  unanimously  carried. 

MR.  WETHERLY:  Before  you  proceed  with  the  motion  to  ad- 
journ, I  want  to  say  in  connection  with  my  question,  that  when  Mr. 
Joseph  brought  in  that  resolution  four  years  ago  we  had  no  such  thing 
as  a  Bureau  of  Mines.  We  have  had  a  scholarly,  professorial  and  legal 
address  by  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  this  evening,  who  expressly 
emphasized  the  function  of  the  Government.  Now  we  have  a  Bureau 
of  Mines  which  was  not  in  existence  when  Mr.  Joseph  worked  so  hard 
and  made  a.  very  eloquent  speech,  as  I  remember  reading  it,  I  was  not 
a  member  of  the  Congress,  and  since  we  have  had  the  Bureau  of  Mines 
you  are  willing  to  go  to  that  extent  that  we  can  ask  for  the  function  of 
government  to  be  employed  in  our  behalf,  why  should  not  a  committee 
be  appointed  to  ask  the  government  under  these  conditions  to  help  us 
in  this  matter? 

THE  PRESIDENT:  I  really  think  from  the  work  done  by  the 
committee  it  was  demonstrated  that  those  questions  are  really  local. 
They  are  state  matters.  It  is  a  matter  of  competition  and  a  matter  of 
effort  amongst  home  members.  As  Mr.  Joseph  said,  in  our  own  state, 
it  has  been  a  matter  of  competition,  and  I  think  we  have  done  about 
as  well  in  my  state  as  any  other  state.  As  Mr.  Joseph  said,  Mr.  Knight, 
through  his  efforts  established  an  independent  smelter  and  brought 
down  the  rates,  which  the  other  smelters  had  been  charging,  but  as  it 
proved  a  failure  he  had  to  close  down  his  plant,  and  since  that  time  we 
have  been  forced  again  to  go  to  the  large  concerns. 

MR.  WETHERLY:  Can't  we  ask  a  little  assistance  to  break  up 
monopolies?  The  first  two  or  three  columns  of  the  Tribune  todaj  were 
occupied  with  what  they  were  going  to  do  with  the  steel  trust. 

i  PRESIDENT:     In  addition,  I  might  say  that  our  local  com- 
mittee took  up  the  matter  with  the  railroads,  and  after  very  hard  work 
tor  months  and  months  we  finally  succeeded  in  getting  quite  a  reduction 
the  railroad  rates.     So  you  see  we  have  worked  at  home. 

Whereupon  an  adjournment  was  taken  until  10  o'clock  a.  m.  Octo- 
Der  Zo. 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  99 

SATURDAY,  OCT.  28,  1911. 
Morning  Session — Orchestra  Hall. 

The  meeting  was  called  to  order  by  President  John  Dern. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Members  and  Delegates  of  the  American 
Mining  Congress,  Ladies  and  Gentlemen:  It  is  a  very  gratifying  recog- 
nition of  the  American  Mining  Congress,  that  the  President  of  the 
United  States  has  favored  us  with  his  presence.  In  him  the  mining 
industry  of  this  country  recognizes  a  true  friend  of  that  great  industry. 
(Applause.)  The  American  Mining  Congress  has  contended  for  years 
for  a  department  of  mines  so  that  we  could  have  a  voice  in  the  govern- 
ment and  administration  of  that  great  industry.  We  have  striven  for 
years  and  have  memorialized  Congress  and  demanded  Congress  to 
create  a  department.  At  the  time  of  the  President's  visit  two  years  ago 
to  the  far  west  I  had  the  pleasure  of  discussing  the  matter  with  him,  and 
he  advised  me  it  would  be  wise  to  start  the  same  as  other  departments 
have,  particularly  the  department  of  agriculture,  which  now  is  recog- 
nized as  one  of  the  main  departments  in  the  Federal  Government,  sug- 
gesting that  instead  of  contending  at  that  time  for  a  department  to  ask 
for  a  bureau  out  of  which  eventually  a  department  would  grow.  I  com- 
municated this  view  expressed  to  me  by  the  President  to  the  American 
Mining  Congress  in  session  shortly  thereafter  at  Goldfield,  and  upon 
that  suggestion  our  committee  proceeded.  Through  the  assistance  of 
our  western  representatives  in  Congress  and  the  Senate,  and  the  co- 
operation of  the  coal  men  of  the  east  and  the  iron  men  of  the  north,  and 
the  great  assistance  of  the  President  himself,  the  Bureau  of  Mines  was 
established.  (Applause.) 

Great  results  have  been  accomplished  particularly  in  the  coal 
fields,  the  first  and  paramount  work  being  the  saving  of  human  life. 
Now  other  fields  must  be  opened,  and  while  the  President  is  here — and 
as  this  may  be  the  last  time  as  retiring  president  of  the  Mining  Con- 
gress that  I  may  have  the  pleasure  of  speaking  to  you — I  would  ask 
that  he  use  his  good  offices  as  President  of  the  United  States  to  inter- 
cede for  the  precious  metal  miners  of  the  west  (applause)  and  recom- 
mend that  Congress  make  an  appropriation  which  will  start  the  work 
of  research  in  that  particular  branch  of  the  mining  industry  which  is  so 
much  in  need.  Ladies  and  gentlemen,  I  have  the  pleasure  and  the  great 
privilege  to  introduce  to  you  the  President  of  the  United  States,  the 
Honorable  William  Howard  Taft.  (Applause.) 

President  Taft's  address  will  be  found  at  page  394  of  this  report. 

PRESIDENT  DERN:  This  finishes  our  program  and  the  Four- 
teenth Annual  Session  of  the  American  Mining  Congress  now  stands 
adjourned  sine  die. 


MEETING  OF  MEMBERS 


WEDNESDAY,  OCTOBER  25,  1911. 
7:30  P.  M. 

Meeting  was  called  to  order  by  the  President.  The  Secretary 
reported  that  283  members  were  present  in  person  and  by  proxy,  being 
a  quorum  of  the  membership. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  We  will  have  the  Secretary  read  the  min- 
utes of  the  meetings  of  the  executive  committee. 

Secretary  Callbreath  then  read  the  minutes  of  the  several  meetings. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  If  there  are  no  objections  the  minutes  will 
stand  approved  as  read,  and  the  action  of  the  executive  committee  in 
regard  to  the  organization  is  ratified  and  approved. 

The  Secretary  will  now  read  the  financial  statement,  as  follows: 

American  Mining  Congress. 

Financial   statement   covering  period   September   1,    1910,   to   September 

30,  1911. 

RECEIPTS. 

Cash  on  hand  September  1,  1910 $1,351.95 

Received  from   life   membership   fees $    100.00 

Received  from  annual  membership   fees 1,745.00 

Received  from  annual  membership  dues 3,770.00 

Los  Angeles  Convention  Fund. 3,870.00 

Chicago    Convention    Fund 500.00 

Miscellaneous    211.95 

10,197.65 


$11,549.60 

DISBURSEMENTS. 
Washington     legislative     expense     and     Secretary's 

traveling  expense $1,852.48 

Salaries,  Secretary,  Assistant  Secretary  and  Clerks, 

Denver   office    4,929.25 

Salaries,  Organizers  and  traveling  expenses 1,375.90 

Printing    ' 1,919.50 

Postage   351.50 

Office  supplies    121.63 

Rent 350.00 

Exchange 23.75 

Miscellaneous    272.11 

$11,196.12 


Balance  cash  on  hand  October  1,  1911 $     353.48 

Denver,   Colo.,   Oct.  3,   1911. 

I  hereby  certify  that  the  foregoing  is  a  correct  statement  of  the 
receipts  and  disbursements  of  the  American  Mining  Congress,  for  the 
period  from  September  1,  1910  to  September  30,  1911. 

(Signed)  J.  R  CALLBREATH,  Jr., 

Secretary. 

Denver,  Colo.,  Oct.  5,  1911. 

We,  the  undersigned  members  of  the  Auditing  Committee  of  the 
American  Mining  Congress,  having  examined  the  vouchers  and  ac- 
counts of  the  Secretary,  covering  transactions  for  the  period  from 


101 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS 

September  1,   1910,  to  September  30,  1911,  &e*>etr£  berttfy  J-fh£t"toe'  And' 
the  same  to  be  correct,  and  that  the  statement  hereto  attached  is  a  cor- 
rect  statement   of   the    financial    transactions    of   the    American    Mining 
Congress  during  said  period. 

(Signed)  E.  G.  REINERT, 

D.  W.  BRUNTON, 
Members  Auditing  Committee. 

MR.  HORACE  J.  STEVENS,  Michigan:  I  move  the  report  be 
received  and  placed  on  file. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  It  has  been  moved  and  seconded  that  the  re- 
port of  the  Secretary  of  the  financial  condition  of  the  Congress  be  re- 
ceived and  placed  on  file,  and  made  a  part  of  the  record. 

SECRETARY  CALLBREATH:  I  would-be  very  glad  if  this  or- 
ganization would  make  a  further  examination  of  these  accounts. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  I  was  going  simply  to  say  as  President  of 
the  Congress  and  of  course  not  living  in  the  same  city  as  Mr.  Call- 
breath  does  I  have  been  compelled  to  sign  checks  in  blank,  but  I  have 
checked  against  it  always,  as  he  has  stated,  at  the  first  of  every  month. 
Mr.  Callbreath  renders  a  statement  the  first  of  every  month  accompanied 
by  duplicate  vouchers  covering  all  expenditures  during  the  month  as 
well  as  a  statement  as  to  the  receipts,  as  you  have  seen  from  his  own 
report,  which  is  certified  by  the  auditing  committee.  I  do  not  think 
it  is  necessary  that  any  further  investigation  or  any  other  recommenda- 
tion should  be  made.  The  auditing  committee  are  men  of  ability,  con- 
fidence and  reliability,  and  they  having  approved  it  I  think  is  ample 
evidence  and  all  that  is  required  in  the  premises. 

Motion  carried. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  It  has  been  customary  at  our  other  meet- 
ings that  the  members  elect  a  nominating  committee  to  report  later 
on  as  to  the  candidates  for  directors. 

MR.  E.  L.  DE  LESTRY,  Minnesota:  It  is  the  custom  of  the 
association  to  have  a  nominating  committee  generally  widely  scattered 
in  territory  and  interest  to  avoid  any  possible  accusation  of  a  frame-up 
and  with  the  view  of  selecting  those  men  for  the  guidance  of  our  affairs 
best  qualified  to  take  charge  of  each  interest.  I  would  like  to  be  per- 
mitted to  present  a  list  of  five  gentlemen  for  your  consideration  not 
with  the  view  it  shall  be  final  but  with  the  idea  of  representing  the 
various  sections  of  the  country  and  interests  of  all  the  people.  I  take 
pleasure  in  presenting  the  names  of  Dr.  Haworth,  Kansas;  Mr.  E.  T. 
Bent,  of  Illinois;  Judge  Thomas  C.  Burke,  Oregon;  Dr.  Talmage,  Utah, 
and  Mr.  De  LaVergne,  of  Colorado.  I  submit  this  list  to  the  member- 
ship as  a  suggestion  and  not  that  it  shall  be  final.  I  believe  upon  close 
inspection  of  the  list  it  will  be  found  they  are  the  best  gentlemen  we 
can  have  at  this  time.  Give  this  committee  time  until  Friday  morning 
to.  canvass  the  situation  and  present  to  the  members  a  list  of  officers 
and  directors  that  they  would  like  to  present  for  election.  This  matter 
should  receive  serious  consideration  and  we  want  for  the  management 
of  our  affairs  the  coming  year  the  best  material  that  we  can  possibly 
select.  We  have  today  examples  which  show  the  magnitude  of  our 
work  spreading  all  over  the  country.  I  have  never  realized  so  much 
that  this  Middle  West  is  such  a  vital  factor.  Gentlemen,  I  hope  you 
can  see  your  way  clear  to  adopt  this  list.  The  members  have  always 
been  identified  with  this  work,  and  we  have  canvassed  this  matter  dur- 
ing the  afternoon.  It  is  not  a  personal  matter  with  me.  I  know  but 
two  men  on  this  list  personally,  and  I  feel  sure  that  our  interests  will 
be  well  taken  care  of  if  entrusted  to  these  five  gentlemen  to  bring  in  a 
list  of  candidats  to  be  voted  on  Friday  morning. 

THE  PRESIDENT:     Do  you  make  that  as  a  motion? 

MR.  DE  LESTRY:     I  do,  Mr.  Chairman. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  It  has  been  moved  that  Dr.  Haworth,  of 
Kansas;  Mr.  Bent,  of  Illinois;  Judge  Burke,  of  Oregon;  Dr.  Talmage, 
of  Utah,  and  Mr.  De  LaVergne,  of  Colorado,  be  named  as  the  nomi- 


102 


OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 


nathlV1  committee  to   report  just   prior   to    our   regular   session    Friday 
morning.     Are  you  ready  for  the  question? 
Motion  seconded  and  carried. 

DR.  E.  R.  BUCKLEY,  Illinois:  I  want  to  ask  the  President  what 
has  been  done  with  the  resolution  which  was  made  by  Mr.  Dorsey,  who 
is  now  deceased,  at  the  Los  Angeles  meeting.  I  don't  think  it  would  be 
out  of  place  to  read  that  resolution.  I  would  like  to  have  a  report  of 
what  has  been  done  in  that  connection.  (Reading.) 

MR.  DORSEY:  At  this  time  I  would  like  to  offer  this  resolution, 
which  I  will  read: 

Whereas,  Certain  promises  and  pledges,  made  by  the  delega- 
tion from  the  State  of  Colorado  at  the  session  of  the  Congress  held 
at  Portland,  Oregon,  .in  1904,  at  the  time  the  Congress  was  called 
to  vote  upon  the  location  of  permanent  headquarters,  have  not  been 
kept  and  fulfilled,  and  the  assistance  promised  has  not  been  given, 
and  as  the  promises  and  pledges,  so  made  at  that  time  induced  the 
members  of  the  Congress  held  at  Portland  to  vote  to  locate  head- 
quarters in  the  City  of  Denver,  and,  further,  much  dissatisfaction 
has  been  expressed  at  the  failure  to  keep  the  agreements  made; 

Therefore,  be  it  resolved,  That  the  directors  of  this  Congress 
be,  and  they  are  hereby,  authorized  to  take  up  at  once  this  matter 
with  the  people  of  Colorado,  and  in  case  satisfactory  arrangements 
cannot  be  made,  then  the  directors  are  authorized  to  take  such  steps 
as  in  their  judgment  seem  advisable,  to  relocate  the  permanent 
headquarters  of  this  Congress  in  some  other  state. 

DR.  BUCKLEY:  This  resolution  was  introduced  by  a  member 
of  the  Congress,  one  who  was  a  director  for  a  long  time  and  who  is 
now  deceased.  I  think  that  the  members  of  this  Congress  would  be 
very  glad  to  have  a  repprt  on  anything  that  has  been  done  on  the  part 
of  the  board  of  directors  in  carrying  out  the  instructions  of  the  mem- 
bers at  that  meeting. 

SECRETARY  CALLBREATH:  Mr.  Chairman,  there  is  very 
little  to  be  said  in  reply.  At  your  request  I  submitted  the  resolution 
to  the  Chamber  of  Commerce,  in  Denver,  and  it  was  taken  under  con- 
sideration, but  there  was  never  any  action  taken,  so  far  as  I  have  heard. 
DR.  BUCKLEY:  Mr.  President,  when  did  you  receive  the  report 
to  that  effect? 

THE  PRESIDENT:  I  think  I  received  the  report  to  that  effect 
at  the  time  we  had  the  meeting  in  Salt  Lake  City. 

DR.  BUCKLEY:  Since  the  meeting  was  held  in  Salt  Lake  City 
has  there  been  any  action  taken  on  the  part  of  the  executive  commit- 
tee with  regard  to  the  matter? 

THE  PRESIDENT:    There  has  been  none  since. 
DR.  BUCKLEY:     I  would  like  to  move,  Mr.  President,  that  this 
meeting   of   members   repeat   the    instructions    to   the    former   board    of 
directors   with    the    request    that   some   action    be    taken    in    the    matter 
before  the  next  meeting,  a  year  hence. 

DR.  ERASMUS  HAWORTH,  Kansas:     I  second  the  motion. 
THE  PRESIDENT:     Gentlemen,  you  have  heard  the  motion  made 
by  Dr.  Buckley.     Are  you  ready  for  the  question? 

A  MEMBER:  I  would  like  to  ask  whether  the  motion  in  the  mat- 
ter gives  the  directors  power. 

DR.  BUCKLEY:  •  It  covers  the  ground  thoroughly.  It  gives  the 
board  complete  power  to  act  in  the  matter,  and  Mr.  Dorsey  was  very 
careful  in  wording  that  resolution,  so  that  it  would  give  them  complete 
power  to  act  in  the  premises.  I  made  the  motion  that  the  same  instruc- 
tions be  given  the  board  of  directors  as  were  given  a  year  ago  in  the 
motion  of  Mr.  Dorsey. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  That  was  covered  in  our  report  at  the  last 
annual  session,  with  reference  to  permanent  headquarters. 

M,R.  W.  N.  SEARCY,  Colorado:  Of  course,  being  from  Colorado, 
I  am  naturally  interested  in  seeing  the  Denver  Chamber  of  Commerce 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  103 

do  its  own  city  justice  in  this  matter.  The  resolution  explains  itself. 
The  history  of  the  whole  transaction  I  suppose  is  set  out  in  this  resolu- 
tion. I  spoke  to  the  chairman  of  the  mining  committee  two  days  ago 
about  this  matter.  I  do  not  oppose  this  motion,  or.  anything  of  that 
kind,  but  it  seems  to  me  that  if  the  Denver  Chamber  of  Commerce,  the 
Commercial  Club  of  Salt  Lake  City,  and  these  other  cities,  should  take 
hold  of  this  problem,  fully  appreciating  the  situation,  and  "it  is  some- 
thing for  this  executive  committee  to  see  to.  I  think  it  is  simply  be- 
cause of  inattention.  I  would  like  to  make  the  suggestion  that  before 
anything  is  done  a  meeting  should  be  held  with  the  Executive  Com- 
mittee of  the  Denver  Chamber  of  Commerce,  to  see  what  that  body 
will  do.  I  think  it  is  more  inattention  than  anything  else. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  For  the  information  of  those  of  you  who 
are  perhaps  new  members,  and  particularly  from  the  eastern  states,  I 
wish  to  state  that  years  ago  when  the  question  of  establishing  a  perma- 
nent home  for  the  Congress  came  up,  Salt  Lake  City,  through  its  repre- 
sentation at  the  Congress,  which  was  held  at  Portland  in  that  year, 
offered  to  the  Congress  a  site  situated  in  the  heart  of  the  city,  a  site 
which  was  worth  a  great  many  thousands  of  dollars.  In  addition  to 
that  they  prepared  and  had  the  authority  to  state  that  a  great  many 
thousands  of  dollars  would  be  furnished  by  the  citizens  of  Utah  for 
the  building  of  a  mining  temple  in  Salt  Lake  City.  It  was  the  only 
proposition  which  was  considered  or  thought  of  prior  to  our  meeting, 
but  through  the  efforts  of  our  worthy  Secretary  here,  and  some  assist- 
ance of  a  prejudice  which  was  worked  up.  springing  the  Mormon  ques- 
tion, against  Utah,  and  I  want  to  repeat  that  right  now  because  that 
was  the  only  thing  by  which  they  defeated  us,  although  it  was  presented 
not  by  Mormons,  but  by  gentiles,  and  we  had  the  goods  to  deliver.  But 
the  hot  air  of  Colorado  finally  beat  us  by  a  small  margin.  It  has  been 
continued  from  year  to  year  and  simply  nothing  was  said,  but  we  be- 
lieved that  finally  Colorado  would  come  through  and  do  as  they  had 
agreed,  but  when  they  had  done  nothing  up  to  last  year  I  took  them 
severely  to  task  at  the  Los  Angeles  convention,  and  the  resolution 
offered  by  Senator  Dorsey  at  that  time  was  adopted  almost  unanimously. 
We  had  no  desire  to  protest  against  it,  but  it  was  simply  to  stir  the 
Colorado  pride  so  that  they  would  finally  do  the  right  thing.  Up  to 
the  present  time,  as  you  have  seen  from  Dr.  Buckley's  remarks  and  the 
report  of  the  committee,  they  have  done  nothing.  It  is  my  candid  belief 
that  unless  Colorado  comes  this  year  we  simply  ought  to  vote  to  move 
the  permanent  home  away  from  that  city.  They  have  acted  in  bad 
faith  and  they  ought  to  know  it,  and  the  people  at  large,  the  people  of 
the  whole  United  States  ought  to  know  it.  Colorado  is  a  great  state 
and  it  seldom  goes  back  on  its  promises,  and  I  for  one  am  sorely  disap- 
pointed at  the  mining  men  and  citizens  of  Colorado  not  making  good 
their  pledges  to  the  American  Mining  Congress. 

DR.  J.  E.  TALMAGE,  Utah:  I  am  heartily  in  accord  with  what  the 
President  just  stated,  and  his  way  of  presenting  the  situation.  A  gentle- 
man from  Colorado  has  made  the  statement  that  this  dereliction  is  due  to 
apathy  or  inattention,  and  suggests  that  this  Congress  should  assume 
the  burden  and  responsibility  of  laboring  with  the  Chamber  of  Com- 
merce of  Denver  and  try  to  convert  them  to  some  better  course  of 
living.  I  be.g  to  submit  that  this  Congress  has  nothing  to  do  along  that 
line,  that  Denver  and  Colorado  worked  hard,  and  I  don't  care  to  analyze 
their  method  of  work,  to  secure  the  headquarters  for  that  Congress  at 
the  meeting  held  in  Portland  in  1906,  and  they  made  certain  pledges, 
pledges  which  I  considered  at  that  time  to  bind  the  people  of  Colorado, 
and  if  one  of  those  pledges  has  been  kept  I  don't  know  of  it.  I  trust 
the  motion  will  prevail  without  any  express  or  implied  instruction  to 
this  Congress  to  do  any  missionary  work  among  the  people  of  Denver 
or  of  Colorado  on  this  matter. 

MR.  E.  M.  DE  LAVERGNE,  Colorado:  I  made  an  effort  in  the  Leg- 
islature of  Colorado  by  introducing  a  bill  for  an  appropriation  of  $100,000 
as  a  starter  for  the  erection  of  a  mining  building  to  be  owned  by  this 


104  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

Congress,  and  failed  because  two-thirds  of  the  members  of  the  Legis- 
lature were  representatives  from  the  agricultural  district  and  had  no 
interest  whatever  in  aiding  us  in  that  matter.  I  finally  succeeded  in 
getting  a  ten  thousand  dollar  appropriation.  The  mining  men  did  the 
best  they  could  to  work  up  an  interest  there,  but  we  had  a  great  many 
things  to  contend  with  and  we  lost  out  on  that. 

SECRETARY  CALLBREATH:  May  I  say  a  word  not  directly 
upon  this  subject,  but  along  the  same  line?  Personally  I  have  no  feel- 
ing as  to  where  the  home  of  the  Mining  Congress  shall  be.  I  have  a 
very  deep  interest  in  the  accomplishments  of  the  Mining  Congress.  The 
work  which  we  have  to  do,  the  results  which  we  are  to  accomplish  are 
the  things  which  should  be  kept  first  in  mind,  and  the  home  of  the 
Congress  should  be  at  that  place  where  its  purposes  can  be  best  served. 
I  rise  to  suggest,  and  beg  your  indulgence  at  this  time,  to  suggest  an 
idea  which  is  in  my  own  mind.  I  believe  the  American  Mining  Con- 
gress as  a  National  organization,  representing  the  various  sections  of 
the  country,  interesting  itself  more  with  the  practical,  you  might  say 
the  political  side  of  mining  than  otherwise,  must  do  the  greater  part 
of  its  work  at  that  point  where  national  legislation  is  done.  In  other 
words,  our  work  must  mostly  be  done  at  Washington,  and  that  the 
location  of  the  permanent  home  of  the  Congress  is  a  matter  of  less 
importance. 

If  you  will  pardon  me,  I  would  like  to  explain  the  newer  plan 
of  organization  provided  for  by  recent  amendments  to  the  by-laws 
by  which  the  mining  men  in  each  state  may  organize  their  own  state 
chapter;  and  that  state  chapters  are  authorized  to  organize  local  sec- 
tions in  the  various  communities,  each  local  section  having  power  to 
do  all  the  things  connected  with  that  community.  If  there  is  a  matter 
which  the  local  section  cannot  do  it  can  apply  for  help  to  the  state 
organization,  and  where  the  issue  is  interstate  or  National  it  shall  be 
passed  up  to  the  National  organization  for  its  action.  I  would  be  most 
happy  if  we  could  some  day  carry  out  the  dream  of  those  of  us  who 
have  stood  by  the  Mining  Congress,  that  there  should  be  somewhere  a 
temple  of  mining  under  which  could  be  found  more  information  con- 
cerning mining  throughout  the  country  than  at  any  other  point — with 
a  first  class  mining  library,  which  does  not  exist  today,  equipped  with 
all  the  information  upon  mining  matters  and  a  comprehensive  exhibit 
of  the  ores  from  the  various  sections  of  commercial  size,  so  that  a  man 
from  Australia  or  any  other  part  of  the  world,  who  wanted  to  study 
American  mining  conditions  could  go  under  that  roof  and  find  the 
information  he  wanted  about  Oregon,  or  Arizona,  or  Utah,  or  any  other 
point  where  precious  metal  mining  is  carried  on.  He  should  here  find 
not  only  a  comprehensive  ore  exhibit  but  geological  maps  of  the  dis- 
trict, claim  maps  showing  locations,  and  the  ownership  of  the  prop- 
erty; in  short  all  possible  information  which  can  possibly  be  assembled 
for  the  student  of  mining.  It  would  be  a  wonderful  thing  if  that  dream 
could  be  carried  out,  and  I  believe  some  day  it  will  be  carried  out.  I 
shall  be  as  happy  as  any  one  can  be  if  that  dream  shall  locate  itself 
in  the  city  of  our  President,  Mr.  Dern.  On  the  other  hand,  the  Mining 
Congress  is  growing  beyond  the  precious  metal  mining  industry.  We 
found  in  our  first  effort  to  secure  the  creation  of  the  Bureau  of  Mines, 
that  with  only  31  congressmen  west  of  the  Missouri  River,  covering  the 
precious  metal  mining  field,  less  than  those  from  New  York  state  alone, 
that  we  did  not  have  much  influence  at  the  National  capitol.  We  had 
to  look  for  other  support,  and  that  support  has  come  to  us  through 
the  coal  mining  men.  It  has  been  loyal,  faithful,  ardent,  active  support, 
and  it  has  done  its  work. 

The  American  Mining  Congress,  as  precious  metal  mining  men's 
organization,  has  been  given  the  credit  for  securing  the  adoption  of 
the  bill  creating  a  Bureau  of  Mines.  We  are  entitled  to  the  credit 
to  the  extent  that  we  led  the  fight,  but  the  votes  which  passed  the 
bill  did  not  come  from  the  precious  metal  states  and  they  were 
influenced  more  by  coal  producers  than  they  were  by  precious 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  105 

t 

metal  miners.  We  have  felt  that  in  order  to  get  that  influence  at 
Washington,  which  is  necessary  to  bring  about  reforms,  we  must  have 
all  the  mining  fraternity  connected  with  one  organization,  the  coal 
people  helping  us  and  we  helping  the  coal  people,  and  in  that  way  it 
will  be  possible  to  get  the  things  which  are  essential  to  the  best  and 
highest  development  of  the  respective  industries.  With  that  idea  in 
mind  we  are  hoping  that  the  .present  session  will  see  the  beginning  of 
an  alliance  with  us  in  large  numbers  of  the  coal  operators,  to  the  extent 
that  our  members  and  theirs  will  all  work  together  under  one  organiza- 
tion, and  thereby  secure  the  best  results  for  every  particular  branch 
of  the  industry.  While  I  believed  at  the  time  that  the  question  of  the 
permanent  headquarters  was  up  that  Denver  was  the  logical  and  only 
place  for  the  permanent  headquarters,  I  must  confess  that  the  develop- 
ments since  that  time  have  convinced  me  that  possibly  I  might  have 
been  in  error,  and  no  matter  how  this  question  is  settled  I  hope  we 
shall  gain  the  strength  and  the  active  co-operation  of  the  mining  men 
of  all  branches  of  the  mining  industry  throughout  this  land,  to  the  end 
that  the  needs  of  the  mining  industry,  the  greater  protection  of  the 
lives  of  the  miners,  the  greater  conservation  of  mineral  resources,  the 
better  development  of  the  mineral  resources,  and  the  best  and  highest 
things  that  can  come  to  the  Mining  Industry  shall  be  brought  to  us 
through  the  earnest  efforts  and  support  of  all  who  are  engaged  in  the 
mining  industry.  I  thank  you,  gentlemen,  for  your  attention. 

Motion  carried. 

MR.  DE  LESTRY:  I  understand  this  afternoon-  there  is  an  in- 
struction to  the  resolutions  committee  to  bring  in  a  resolution  in 
memory  of  our  deceased  members,  and  I  would  like  to  move  that  the 
Secretary  compile  a  list  of  those  who  have  gone  from  our  midst,  and 
that  a  page  be  set  aside  in  the  proceedings  on  which  shall  be  printed 
the  names,  as  is  generally  done  in  an  organization  of  this  kind.  I  was 
not  here  this  afternoon,  and  I  do  not  know  whether  it  is  necessary  to 
make  a  motion  in  order  to  have  a  page  set  aside. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  If  there  is  no  objection  to  that  it  is  so 
ordered. 

MR.  E.  T.  BENT,  Illinois:  I  don't  know  whether  this  is  the  place 
to  follow  a  little  farther  the  remark  that  our  Secretary  just  made  about 
the  broadening  of  this  Congress  and  the  bringing  about  of  full  co- 
operation between  the  metal  miners  and  the  coal  miners,  but  there  has 
been  an  effort  made  to  get  the  coal  miners  of  Illinois,  for  instance,  to 
come  into  the  Mining  Congress  in  numbers,  and  I  am  convinced  that 
the  way  to  accomplish  the  objects  that  have  been  set  forth  here  in 
Illinois,  at  least,  would  be  if  your  organic  law  was  so  changed  that 
coal  operators'  associations  could  be  affiliated  on  some  agreed  basis 
of  financial  support.  If  that  were  done  I  belive  your  present  depressed 
condition  of  things  would  be  advanced  more  than  if  an  effort  is  made 
to  obtain  individual  memberships.  That  would  be  a  slow  process,  but 
if  a  plan  was  carefully  worked  out  to  secure  the  affiliation  of  existing 
organizations,  that  a  good  deal  might  be  accomplished  in  a  short  time. 
Ascertain  what  money  is  needed  for  the  campaign  before  us,  ascertain 
what  money  should  come  from  each  state,  and  then  have  a  dual  plan 
by  which  you  still  maintain  your  individual  membership,  and  also  take 
in  affiliated  organizations  of  mining  men  on  a  proper  financial  basis. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  I  would  like  to  ask  the  Secretary  to  state 
as  to  whether  under  our  present  articles  and  by-laws  such  a  plan  as 
has  just  been  suggested  is  feasible. 

MR.  J.  W.  DAWSON,  West  Virginia:  Following  up  the  gentle- 
man who  has  just  spoken,  the  conditions  which  he  described  as  applying 
to  Illinois,  apply  equally  to  West  Virginia,  and  I  think  it  would  fit 
our  case  very  nicely.  In  talking  to  Mr.  Neil  Robinson  a  few  days  past, 
of  the  advisability  of  his  coming  to  join  this  Congres's — I  will  say  for 
the  information  of  those  here,  that  Mr.  Neil  Robinson  is  Secretary  of 
the  West  Virginia  Mining  Association,  and  the  moving  spirit  of  it — 
and  he  made  the  same  suggestion  that  the  gentleman  who  has  just 


106  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

spoken,  that  some  such  plan  might  work  out  better  than  by  individual 
membership. 

DR.  HENRY  M.  PAYNE,  West  Virginia:  Right  along  the  same 
line,  at  a  meeting  of  the  West  Virginia  Mining  Association,  and  of  the 
Appalachian  Engineering  Association  the  proposition  was  then  made  that 
those  organizations  combine  with  the  American  Mining  Congress,  and 
at  that  time  it  was  turned  down  by  those  organizations  simply  because 
the  American  Mining  Congress  constitution  at  that  time  did  not  permit 
it  and  I  think,  as  Mr.  Dawson  has  said,  that  if  it  is  possible  for  us  to 
consolidate  in  that  way  there  is  no  question  that  almost  all  these  small 
organizations  in  the  East  would  be  glad  to  affiliate  themselves  with 
the  American  Mining  Congress.  As  Mr.  Callbreath  is  aware  I  spent 
almost  one  entire  summer  in  West  Virginia  with  Dr.  White,  state 
geologist,  trying  to  effect  an  organization  of  that  kind,  and  it  was  im- 
possible simply  because  at  that  time  the  American  Mining  Congress 
had  not  made  provision  for  such  consolidation.  I  believe  if  it  can  be 
brought  about,  if  the  plan  as  suggested  can  be  carried  out  I  believe  the 
coal  miners  will  be  very  glad  to  affiliate  themselves  with  us. 

SECRETARY  CALLBREATH:  I  think  it  would  be  wise  if  a  com- 
mittee could  be  appointed  to  devise  a  plan  which  would  meet  that  sit- 
uation. 

MR.  CARL  SCHOLZ,  Illinois:  I  make  such  a  motion.  Without 
being  authorized  to  speak  for  the  states  of  Kansas,  Missouri,  Oklahoma 
and  Arkansas,  that  very  same  condition  Mr.  Dawson  referred  to  exists 
in  the  states  just  mentioned,  and  I  think  it  might  be  safe  to  include 
Iowa  as  well,  and  I  make  the  motion  suggested  by  the  Secretary. 

DR.  TALMAGE:  I  second  the  motion.  I  was  about  to 
offer  a  motion  to  that  effect,  understanding  from  the  remarks  of  the 
Secretary  that  the  present  constitution  and  by-laws  do  not  specifically 
provide  for  such.  I  would  like  to  add  that  in  some  other  organizations 
that  plan  has  been  adopted,  and  it  has  been  found  to  work  with  great 
success,  notably  the  American  Association  of  Musicians.  Its  member- 
ship of  course  is  individual,  but  it  has  a  specific  kind  of  membership 
which  is  reserved  for  institutions  and  organizations,  and  from  those 
institutions  and  organizations  its  strength  is  mainly  derived. 

MR.  BENT:  Is  that  committee  to  report  during  this  session  or  to 
report  to  the  directors,  or  will  this  committee  on  the  constitution  and 
by-laws  have  power  to  formulate  a  plan  and  put  it  into  effect? 

MR.  DE  LESTRY:  It  seems  to  me  that  this  committee  should 
report  to  the  members  for  action.  It  means  a  change  in  our  organic 
law,  and  that  cannot  be  effected  by  the  council  alone.  I  believe  under 
our  constitution  it  would  require  a  vote  of  two-thirds  of  the  members 
present,  and  the  committee  should  report  here.  The  same  situation 
that  exists  here  existed  in  the  iron  countries  where  the  Lake  Superior 
Institution  was  organized  which  has  been  in  existence  for  ten  or  fifteen 
years.  I  am  heartily  in  favor  of  holding  out  a  welcoming  hand  to  get 
all  these  interests  together.  We  have  a  big  fight.  Let  us  fight  it 
shoulder  to  shoulder.  This  report  should  be  made  here  and  passed 
upon  by  the  members.  Then  the  executive  council  can  adopt  such 
regulations  as  may  be  necessary  to  carry  out  the  report. 

DR.  TALMAGE:  I  am  reminded  that  thirty  days  time  is  re- 
quired for  an  amendment.  That  being  the  case  I  think  this  motion 
should  be  amended  to  meet  that  requirement,  or  that  it  be  understood 
that  the  committee  shall  report  within  say  sixty  days  to  the  board  of 
directors,  and  that  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  board  of  directors  to 
take  action  promptly. 

MR.  DE  LESTRY:  If  the  motion  was  so  shaped  to  suspend  the 
rules,  this  committee  could  report  forthwith  to  this  session. 

SECRETARY  CALLBREATH:  I  doubt  seriously  whether  we 
can  suspend  the  rules  or  do  this  in  any  other  form  than  that  permitted 
by  the  by-laws  which  require  .thirty  days  for  an  amendment.  It  is 
true  the  members  are  represented  by  proxies  appointed  to  do  certain 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  107 

things,  but  these  members  have  had  no  notice  of  this  proposed  change. 
Therefore  it  seems  to  me  only  fair  to  the  members  that  they  have 
notice  of  the  proposed  amendment. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  It  seems  to  me  that  the  consensus  of  opinion 
is  that  the  very  idea  proposed  in  this  motion  should  be  carried  through, 
but  it  is  my  judgment  that  we  would  better  follow  strictly,  according 
to  our  by-laws  and  articles  of  incorporation.  It  entails  a  little  work  to 
the  Secretary  and  to  your  board  of  directors,  but  the  question  of  thirty 
days  does  not  make  any  difference  and  the  question  of  a  few  dollars 
in  postage  and  a  little  additional  time  for  the  Secretary  should  not  be 
considered.  I  believe  it  would  be  almost  impossible  for  that  committee, 
if  it  is  appointed  or  elected  here  today,  to  report  tomorrow.  I  think 
we  would  better  give  them  time  and  submit  the  matter  to  the  board 
of  directors,  and  the  board  of  directors  can  call  a  special  meeting  and 
have  the  proceedings  according  to  our  by-laws.  I  think  that  is  a  safer 
and  better  way,  and  at  the  very  utmost  it  won't  take  more  than  about 
sixty  days  to  accomplish  what  we  want  to  do  and  do  it  in  the  proper 
and  the  regular  way. 

DR.  HAWORTH:  I  want  to  express  my  agreement  with  the 
sentiment  we  have  just  heard  by  our  President,  and  I  want  to  state 
the  reasons. why  I  agree  with  him.  It  seems  to  me  that  this  is  a  com- 
paratively unusually  important  meeting  at  this  Congress.  Now  we 
have  the  subject  up  of  our  permanent  home.  We  have  the  subject  be- 
fore us  just  now  in  the  motion  that  is  pending  in  a  great-  degree,  if  I 
understand,  remodeling  the  question  of  membership,  which  is  a  funda- 
mental question  to  this  organization.  I  understand  that  already  we  have 
temporarily,  so  to  speak,  amended  our  methods  of  obtaining  members, 
and  the  probabilities  are  that  some  of  pur  rules  and  methods  are  so 
cumbersome  that  they  should  be  laid  aside.  I  thoroughly  believe  that 
is  what  ought  to  be  done.  I  think  a  committee  should  be  appointed 
that  is  representative,  composed  of  able  men,  and  let  them  go  into  this 
matter  very  deliberately,  and  at  the  same  time  very  thoroughly,  with 
the  thought  in  mind  of  probably  getting  ourselves  on  a  broader  founda- 
tion that  we  have  ever  been  before  and  on  a  better  foundation.  If  that 
is  done  it  necessarily  will  take  a  very  careful  examination  of  our  regu- 
lations, and  a  careful  examination  of  what  the  most  sanguine  of  us  hope 
will  be  the  outcome  within  the  next  few  years.  A  committee  would  do 
unusually  good  work  if  they  could  get  this  matter  ready  to  report  inside 
of  sixty  or  ninety  days,  and  I  hope  that  this  motion  may  be  altered 
somewhat  so  that  it  will  give  them  sufficient  time  to  make  a  report  to 
the  directors  rather  than  to  this  meeting. 

MR.  SCHOLZ:  As  the  maker  of  the  motion  I  am  glad  to  consent 
and  include  all  the  suggestions  here  mentioned  as  they  seem  to  be 
very  sensible  and  proper,  and  with  the  consent  of  my  second  I  so  alter 
my  motion. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  The  Secretary  will  read  the  motion  as 
amended. 

SECRETARY  CALLBREATH:  The  motion  is  that  a  committee 
shall  be  appointed  under  instructions  to  prepare  such  an  amendment  to 
the  constitution  and  by-laws  as  will  permit  the  association  with  the 
American  Mining  Congress  of  mining  organizations  already  in  exist- 
ence under  some  plan  of  support  which  shall  be  found  to  be  satisfactory, 
and  that  that  committee  be  given  as  much  time  as  they  may  require  to 
perfect  their  work. 

DR.  TALMAGE:  Could  you  not  say  of  mining  and  allied  organ- 
izations? We  may  want  to  provide  for  the  admission  of  some  commer- 
cial organizations  that  have  an  interest  in  mining  and  are  not  strictly 
mining  organizations  themselves. 

THE  PRESIDENT:     That  will  be  added  to  it. 

Motion  carried. 


108  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

Whereupon  an  adjournment  was  taken  until  9  o'clock  a.  m.  Octo- 
ber 27. 

ADJOURNED  MEETING  OF  MEMBERS, 

OCTOBER  27,   1911. 

9  O'clock  A.  M. 

THE  PRESIDENT:    We  will  first  listen  to  the  report  of  the  com- 
mittee which  was  appointed  for  the  purpose  of  revising  the  by-laws  to 
make  such  amendments  as  would  provide  for  the  affiliation  of  the  coal 
mining   industry    organizations    or   kindred    organizations. 
Secretary  Callbreath  then  read  the  report  as  follows: 
To  the  American  Mining  Congress: 

Your  committee  appointed  to  draft  an  amendment  to  the  By- 
Laws,  providing  for  the  association  of  mining  and  kindred  organi- 
zations with  the  American  Mining  Congress,  do  respectfully  recom- 
mend that  Section  1,  of  Article  3,  be  amended  to  read  as  follows: 

"Any  person  actively  associated  with  mining,  who,  after  his 
application  has  been  approved  by  the  Committee  on  Membership, 
shall  pay  an  initiation  fee  of  fifteen  dollars  ($15.00),  shall  become 
an  active  member  of  this  Congress,  and  thereafter  he  shall  pay  in 
advance  an  annual  fee  of  ten  dollars  ($10.00),  and  during  the  term 
for  which  said  dues  have  been  paid  shall  be  entitled  to  all  rights 
and  privileges  usual  to  members. 

"Any  organization  devoted  to  mining  or  kindred  interests  may 
be  associated  with  the  American  Mining  Congress  upon  any  plan 
which  may  be  agreed  upon,  and  shall  be  allowed  one  vote  for  each 
ten  dollars  annually  contributed  by  such  organization  to  the  Ameri- 
can Mining  Congress,  such  vote  or  votes  to  be  cast  by  such  person 
or  persons  as  may  be  designated  by  such  organization. 

"No  member  shall  be  permitted  to  vote,  nor  to  enjoy  the 
privileges  of  this  organization  until  his  dues  have  been  paid  for  the 
current  year,  and  all  votes  shall  be  cast  in  person,  except  as  may 
otherwise  be  provided." 

Your  committee  further  recommends  that  the  Secretary  be  in- 
structed to  call  a  special  meeting  of  the  members  of  the  American 
Mining  Congress  for  the  consideration  of  an.  action  upon  such 
amendment. 

L  W.  DAWSON, 
:.  L.  DE  LESTRY, 

D.  MAC  VICHIE, 

E.  T.  BENT. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Gentlemen,  what  are  you  going  to  do  with 
the  report_pf  the  committee? 

MR.  CARL  SCHOLZ,  Illinois:     I  move  the  adoption  of  the  report. 

DR.  J.  A.  HOLMES,  Washington,  D.  C:  In  seconding  that  motion 
to  adopt  the  report  I  would  like  to  say  just  a  word.  I  hold  very  strongly 
to  the  opinion  that  we  need  another  class  of  membership  in  the  Ameri- 
can Mining  Congress,  whether  we  call  them  associate  members,  or  some- 
thing of  that  kind,  by  which  we  can  get  a  large  number  of  people  who  are 
interested  in  mining,  but  to  whom  that  ten  dollars  seems  a  pretty  serious 
barrier  and  when  the  time  comes  for  voting  on  this  finally  in  the  meet- 
ing to  be  called,  I  don't  know  whether  any  motion  that  may  be  made 
now  can  be  counted  as  a  part  of  that  program. 

SECRETARY  CALLBREATH:  Any  member  has  the  right  at 
any  time  to  submit  an  amendment. 

DR.  HOLMES:  I  have  forgotten  now  whether  there  was  a  re- 
quirement that  the  Secretary  shall  call  such  a  meeting.  I  don't  think 
there  was,  but  if  not  it  was  offered  as  an  amendment  to  be  submitted 
and  it  will  be  received  and  sent  out  with  the  notice. 

MR.   E.  B.  KIRBY,  Missouri:     I  rise  to  ask  merely  for  informa- 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  109 

tion  about  this  resolution.  Is  it  something  that  has  been  framed  up 
carefully  enough  by  the  committee  or  by  the  officials  to  act  on  it? 

THE  PRESIDENT:  It  was  considered  on  the  floor  the  other 
day  and  the  committee  was  appointed  for  the  purpose  of  revising  the 
by-laws  and  this  is  their  report.  Before  putting  the  motion  I  simply 
desire  to  make  this  remark.  We  have  a  large  representation  here  by 
proxies,  but  the  actual  members  present  are  not  so  numerous  because 
they  are  pretty  late  coming  in.  The  way  the  organization  is  shaping 
itself  and  the  interest  which  is  manifested  by  the  coal  men,  I  think 
no  doubt  the  iron  men  will  join  us  eventually.  I  think  the  time  is  near 
at  hand  when  we  should  take  occasion,  recognizing  the  interests  of 
the  affiliated  mining  industries  of  this  country,  to  increase  our  director- 
ship. I  think  instead  of  having  the  present  number  we  almost  ought 
to  have  double  that  number.  I  believe  in  large  board  of  directors,  for 
therein  lies  great  strength.  A  man  being  elected  a  director  naturally 
considers  that  he  is  then  responsible  for  the  Congress  personally,  and 
he  will  work  in  his  own  community  for  the  success  of  the  Congress. 
If  we  had  a  large  representation  here  in  person  I  would  be  almost 
inclined  to  suggest  that  even  at  this  time  we  should  embody  in  this 
report  or  perhaps  make  another  report  to  amend  our  articles  so  as  to 
provide  a  large  directorate.  I  simply  make  that  as  a  suggestion  at 
this  time. 

MR.  E.  L.  DE  LESTRY,  Minnesota :  The  proposition  just  mentioned 
by  the  President  of  this  association  was  carefully  threshed  out  by  your 
committee;  as  we  are  now  organized,  and  here  represented,  we  are  still 
the  original  American  Mining  Congress  as  it  was  started  by  the  metal 
mining  states  of  the  West.  We  have  not  a  very  large  number  of  coal  mem- 
bers, and  I  don't  believe  at  this  time  in  surrendering  the  idea  upon  which 
this  organization  was  founded  merely  at  the  beck  and  call  of  people  not  yet 
identified  with  us.  This  association  spent  its  time  and  talent  and  money 
and  energy  to  secure  the  Bureau  of  Mines,  and  after  we  have  done  the 
work  the  coal  interests  have  gotten  the  good  of  it,  and  the  metal  miners 
had  not  had  a  look  in  at  the  Bureau  of  Mines.  I  believe  along  the  lines 
of  this  amendment,  and  if  it  is  worth  having,  gentlemen,  it  is  worth 
paying  for  on  their  and  our  part.  An  association  here  in  the  state  of 
Illinois  of  some  200  coal  operators  could  not  under  any  other  process 
pay  for  one  membership  and  get  200  votes  on  any  proposal  that  we 
may  make  up,  and  if  we  gave  an  association  membership  on  the  pay- 
ment of  one  fee  we  would  defeat  our  own  purposes.  Let  us  open  the 
doors  not  only  to  coal  men,  but  to  quarry  men,  and  to  the  iron  people 
of  my  state,  who  organized  the  Lake  Superior  Institute.  Let  them 
come  in  and  be  elected  to  membership  in  the  Mining  Congress,  and 
pay  dues  and  cast  votes  according  to  the  payments  that  are  made,  the 
same  as  we  do.  I  feel  this  way  about  it:  If  it  is  going  to  be  such  great 
benefit  to  an  organized  body  in  any  other  industry  along  this  line,  isn't 
it  worth  while  for  the  individual  members  to  become  members  of  this 
Congress?  There  is  not  a  man  living  who  is  actively  engaged  and  inter- 
ested in  mining  who  can't  pay  $10  a  year  to  have  his  interests  pro- 
tected. I  think  the  matter  that  the  President  mentioned  about  increas- 
ing the  directorate  should  be  taken  up  at  the  next  session  after  we 
have  seen  the  results  of  this  amendment  and  when  it  is  really  a 
necessity,  when  that  membership  has  been  secured  and  their  interests 
become  as  paramount  here  as  ours.  I  don't  believe  in  tearing  down 
the  act  of  our  organization  at  this  time  until  we  know  at  least  whether 
the  opening  of  the  doors  will  bring  the  people  to  us. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Understand  1  am  not  urging  that,  but  I  say 
the  time  is  coming.  I  simply  mentioned  that  as  a  matter  of  considera- 
tion, believing  that  it  would  be  a  proper  thing  after  we  were  once  thor- 
oughly organized  on  the  lines  which  are  now  being  laid. 

MR.  E.  T.  BENT,  Illinois:  As  a  member  of  the  committee  and 
speaking  for  the  coal  men,  speaking  for  the  few  new  members,  I  wish  to 
say  it  is  not  the  desire  of  the  coal  men  that  they  be  given  representation 
beyond  the  extent  to  which  they  contribute  to  the  maintenance  of  this 


110  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

work.  Furthermore,  we  desire  as  much  as  the  last  speaker  that  coal 
men  become  individual  members  of  this  Congress.  I  am  here  as  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Congress,  and  I  would  say  in  Illinois  and  other  coal  states 
members  of  our  organizations  cannot  do  anything  that  will  accomplish 
more  than  the  $10  spent  for  fees  in  this  Congress.  You  alone  are  pow- 
erless to  influence  public  opinion  sufficiently  to  influence  Congress,  and 
we  alone  can't  do  it,  but  unitedly  we  can  help  you  and  help  ourselves. 
Let  us  gain  the  support  of  these  organizations  as  well.  The  resolution 
goes  as  far  as  the  coal  men  ask  (applause). 

MR.  SCHOLZ:  Mr.  Bent  has  already  expressed  what  I  intended 
to  say.  I  only  want  to  add  one  more  point,  and  that  is  from  his  ex- 
pression it  would  seem  our  interests  could  possibly  conflict.  I  want 
to  point  out  the  fact  that  whether  we  mine  coal,  clay,  silver,  gold,  iron, 
or  copper,  the  intention  of  the  Congress  is  directed  in  only  one  chan- 
nel, and  that  is  for  the  benefit  of  all,  and  there  should  be  no  distinction 
between  metal  mining  and  coal  mining.  We  have  so  many  common 
interests  that  we  should  lose  sight  of  individual  interest,  and  work  for 
the  common  good. 

MR.  S.  A.  TAYLOR,  Pennsylvania:  I  just  want  to  call  attention 
to  one  thing,  lest  it  might  be  misunderstood.  My  friend,  -the  first 
speaker,  made  the  statement  that  the  Mining  Congress  had  secured  the 
Bureau  of  Mines.  I  am  sure  there  is  no  person  in  this  room,  no  person 
among  the  coal  men,  nor  any  other  person  in  any  other  department  of 
mining  that  would  detract  one  iota  from  the  honor  and  part  which  is  due 
the  metal  men  in  securing  the  Bureau  of  Mines.  Lest  there  should  be 
a  misapprehension  of  the  facts  from  the  statement  I  would  like  to  state 
this,  and  I  believe  it  will  be  borne  out  by  every  other  person  who  had 
anything  to  do  with  the  getting  of  the  Bureau  of  Mines  established  in 
Congress,  and  I  am  sure  my  friend,  the  chairman  of  the  mining  com- 
mittee, will  bear  me  out  in  this  fact  that  whenever  any  institution  which 
is  devoted  entirely  to  one  branch  of  mining  appears  before  Congress  to 
establish  their  views  and  asks  for  legislation,  it  immediately  becomes  a 
matter  of  selfishness,  or  rather  appears  as  a  matter  of  selfishness.  I 
think  one  of  the  things  probably  more  than  anything  else  that  induced 
Congress  to  establish  the  Bureau  of  Mines  was  the  fact  that  all 
branches  of  mining  importuned  Congress  for  the  establishment  of  that 
Bureau.  It  is  true  the  American  Mining  Congress  led  that  fight,  and 
through  the  excellent  service  of  the  Secretary,  who  was  on  the  firing 
line  all  the  time,  was  enabled  to  keep  the  other  branches  of  mining  in 
close  touch  with  what  was  going  on.  Practically  every  branch  of  mining 
was  present,  and  I  believe  it  was  the  united  effort  of  all  those  branches 
more  than  any  one  thing  that  brought  about  the  final  result.  Now  the 
point  I  wish  to  make  is  this,  if  we  hope  to  establish  anything  that  is 
good  for  the  entire  country  it  must  come  through  some  national  work, 
such  as  the  American  Mining  Congress;  it  can't  be  secured  through  the 
coal  operators'  association,  it  can't  be  secured  through  the  zinc  opera- 
tors' association,  it  can't  be  secured  through  the  iron  operators'  asso- 
ciation because  the  moment  those  individual  associations  appear  be- 
fore Congress  it  at  once  gives  out  the  impression,  that  it  is  a  selfish 
interest  that  is  asking  for  these  things.  I  believe  that  the  moment  any 
one  branch  of  mining  undertakes  to  run  away  with  the  Mining  Con- 
gress, that  the  Mining  Congress  is  doomed.  Its  work  for  the  future 
should  represent  the  interests  of  the  entire  mining  world  in  all  aspects, 
and  the  various  associations  must  work  in  harmony  in  the  mining  con- 
gress. For  that  reason  I  believe  this  motion  should  carry.  I  have 
little  fear  of  any  branch  of  mining  attempting  to  run  away  and  control 
absolutely  the  Mining  Congress. 

Upon  the  motion  being  put  it  was  unanimously  carried. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Is  the  nominating  committee  ready  to  re- 
port? 

DR.  ERASMUS  HAWORTH,  Kansas:  Mr.  President,  the  commit- 
tee appointed  to  nominate  directors  to  be  elected  at  this  meeting  find  that 
they  should  report  seven  nominations,  one  for  a  period  of  one  year,  one 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  111 

for  a  period  of  two  years,  and  five  for  a  period  of  three  years.  We  beg  to 
submit  the,following  report:  For  the  one  year  term  we  nominate  Mr.  John 
Dern,  our  present  President,  and  before  I  go  on  to  the  others  I  want 
to  make  just  a  word  of  explanation  regarding  this  particular  nomina- 
tion. Mr.  Dern  got  word  to  us  in  some  way  that  he  thought  he  had 
served  about  long  enough  and  asked  that  we  should  not  renominate  him. 
No  sooner  had  that  information  leaked  out  amongst  the  members  of 
the  Congress  than  we  were  besieged  on  all  hands  with  the  urgent  re- 
quest that  we,  insist  on  Mr.  Dern  serving.  I  had  two  sessions  with  the 
gentleman  before  he  would  permit  his  name  to  be  mentioned,  and  I 
don't  know  how  many  other  sessions  other  gentlemen  had.  He  finally 
said,  "If  you  really  think  I  ought  to  say  yes,  I  don't  want  to  be  con- 
trary, and  you  may  put  me  on  for  one  year."  Otherwise,  we  would 
have  put  him  on  for  three  years.  For  the  two-year  term,  the  committee 
begs  to  nominate  Mr.  A.  G.  Brownlee,  of  Colorado,  who  at  the  present" 
time  in  a  director,  I  believe.  For  the  three-year  term  we  nominated 
Mr.  Samuel  A.  Taylor,  of  Pennsylvania;  Mr.  Carl  Scholz,  of  Illinois,  and 
Mr.  John  Mayer,  of  Missouri;  Dr.  James  Douglas,  of  New  York,  and 
Mr.  H.  N.  Taylor,  of  Illinois. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Gentlemen,  you  have  heard  the  report  of 
•the  committee.  What  is  your  pleasure? 

MR.  E.  L.  MARTIN,  Georgia:  I  move  you,  Mr.  President,  that 
the  Secretary  cast  the  ballot  of  the  association. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  It  has  been  moved  that  the  Secretary  be 
instructed  to  cast  the  unanimous  ballot  of  all  the  members  present  in 
person  or  by  proxy  for  the  election  of  those  nominated  by  the 
committee. 

SECRETARY  CALLBREATH:  In  accordance  with  your  instruc- 
tion, Mr.  President,  I  have  cast  the  ballot  of  the  members  present  in  per- 
son and  by  proxy  for  directors,  as  follows:  One  year,  John  Dern,  Utah; 
two  years,  A.  G.  Brownlee,  Colorado;  three  years,  Samuel  A.  Taylor, 
Pennsylvania;  Carl  Scholz,  .Illinois;  John  Mayer,  Missouri;  Dr.  James 
Douglas,  New  York,  and  H.  N.  Taylor,  Illinois. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  Gentlemen,  by  casting  that  vote  you  have 
elected  the  directors  for  the  terms  specified  as  announced  by  the 
Secretary. 

SECRETARY  CALLBREATH:  May  I  say  a  word  with  refer- 
ence to  the  suggestion  which  the  President  made  concerning  an  in- 
crease of  the  board  of  directors,  simply  to  indicate  what  would  be  nec- 
essary in  case  that  should  be  decided  upon.  Under  the  corporation  laws 
of  the  state  of  Colorado,  which  are  not  altogether  clear,  there  is  sup- 
posed to  be  a  limitation  of  thirteen  on  the  possible  number  of  directors 
which  an  organization  can  have,  and  that  has  been  passed  upon  by  some 
prominent  lawyers  there  as  being  the  law,  a  position  in  which  I  per- 
sonally do  not  agree  and  which  has  not  been  generally  followed  in 
some  of  the  charitable  institutions  which  have  any  number  of  directors 
that  they  see  fit.  But  that  is  the  situation  with  reference  to  the  law  of 
Colorado  and  it  would  probably  be  better  to  avoid  any  question  of  that 
kind;  in  case  you  should  increase  the  board  of  directors  we  could  sur- 
render the  charter  and  reinccrporate  in  some  other  state  in  which  there 
was  no  such  limitation.  That  of  course  would  be  a  question  to  be 
worked  out  whenever  it  is  decided  that  it  is  wise  to  increase  the  board 
of  directors,  which  seems  to  be  likely  soon. 

MR.  JOHN  MAYER,  Missouri:  As  I  understood  the  resolution 
it  said  that  these  different  associations  would  be  admitted  on  a  plan 
to  be  agreed  upon.  When  do  I  understand  that  agreed  plan  is  to  be 
decided?  I  only  want  the  information  to  report  to  the  Southwestern 
Coal  Operations'  Associations. 

SECRETARY  CALLBREATH:  That  will  be  taken  up  by  the 
Board"  of  Directors  of  the  Mining  Congress  as  now  constituted  for 
decision. 


112  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

THE  PRESIDENT:  If  there  is  nothing  further  I  will  entertain 
a  motion  to  adjourn  the  members'  meeting. 

MR.  SCHOLZ:     Is  this  the  final  adjournment? 

THE  PRESIDENT:     It  is  of  the  meeting  of  the  members. 

MR.  SCHOLZ:     For  what  time? 

THE  PRESIDENT:     Until  the  next  annual  session. 

MR.  S.  A.  TAYLOR:     I  move  that  we  adjourn. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  It  has  been  moved  and  second  that  we  now 
adjourn  sine  die. 

MR.  J.  M.  DINWIDDIE,  Iowa:  This  Congress  is  made  up  of 
sort  of  a  double  header.  It  does  not  seem  to  me  the  proper  thing  for 
.the  members  to  take  certain  action  to  adjourn  before  the  final  meeting 
*of  the  members  and  delegates.  This  adjournment  puts  us  out  of  posi- 
tion to  take  up  any  question  that  might  be  put  before  us.  Could  we 
not  adjourn  at  the  call  of  the  Chair  so  that  we  can  have  that  chance  to 
bring  before  us  such  tkings  as  may  be  necessary?  I  don't  know  how 
else  it  can  be  arranged  if  you  are  going  to  give  the  delegates  any 
benefit  at  all. 

THE  PRESIDENT:  For  the  information  of  the  gentleman  I 
will  say  this  has  been  the  practice  that  anything  which  might  come  up 
requiring  consideration  will  be  referred  to  the  board  of  directors  for 
their  action.  • 

Whereupon  the  meeting  adjourned  sine  die. 


REPORTS  OF  COMMITTEES 


Report  of  Committee  on  Workmen's  Compensation. 

To  the  American   Mining  Congress. 

Gentlemen:  The  undersigned  committee,  to  which  was  delegated 
the  work  of  considering  and  recommending  the  form  of  a  law,  providing 
compensation  for  accidents  occurring  in  connection  with  the  coal  min- 
ing industry  of  the  various  States,  respectfully  submit  the  following 
tentative  measure: 

From  available  statistics  of  tonnage  and  accidents,  fatal  and  other- 
wise, your  committee  feels  satisfied  that  the  revenues  from  the  levy  of 
1  cent  per  ton,  on  all  coal  mined  for  commercial  purposes,  will  be 
ample  to  meet  all  the  requirements  of  the  proposed  act.  The  funda- 
mental principle  upon  which  the  suggested  legislation  is  founded — and 
one  that  must  appeal  to  all  fair  minded  men — is  that  the  industry,  in- 
stead of  the  individual,  is  responsible  for  the  accidents  which  in  a 
measure  it  creates,  and  that  reasonable  financial  provision  should  be 
made  for  the  unfortunate  injured  and  those  dependent  upon  them,  and 
that  whatever  amount  the  law  requires  to  be  distributed  should  go  di- 
rectly and  immediately  to  those  most  in  need  of  it  and  best  entitled  to 
receive  it. 

The  elimination  of  the  question  of  negligence,  as  legally  denned, 
would  operate  in  the  adjudication  of  such  claims  to  discourage  and  pro- 
hibit the  present  wasteful  system  of  litigation,  and  would  therefore 
avoid  the  loss  of  time  and  money  incidental  thereto.  It  is  furthermore 
a  recognition  of  the  tragic  fact  that  under  the  complicated  conditions' 
of  modern  industry,  despite  every  care  and  caution,  accidents  will  occur, 
and  that  such  unavoidable  occurrences  should,  as  far  as  possible,  be 
anticipated,  provided  for,  and  included  as  one  of  the  important  and 
necessary  elements  of  cost  in  the  general  conduct  of  industry. 

In  order  that  the  coal  producing  States  that  compete  directly  with 
each  other  may  not  be  handicapped  on  account  of  such  legislation,  we 
respectfully  recommend  the  immediate  appointment  of  a  joint  commit- 
tee, comprising  two  mine  operators  and  two  mine  workers,  to  co- 
operate with  the  members  of  this  committee  representing  such  States, 
to  urge  upon  the  respective  legislatures  the  enactment  of  the  bill  attached 
hereto,  to  take  effect  as  nearly  as  possible  at  the  same  time  between 
such  competitive  States,  with  such  changes  as  the  form  of  administra- 
tion in  each  State  may  require. 

Very  respectfully  yours, 

JOHN   H.   JONES, 
DAVID  ROSS, 

i  W.  R.  WOODFORD, 

J.  W.  DAWSON, 

Committee. 

AN  ACT 

To  provide  indemnity  for  disabilities  caused  by  accidental  injuries  aris- 
ing out  of  and  in  the  course  of  employment  in  or  about  any  coal 
mine,  coal  washer,  or  coal  tipple  within  this  State  (or  Common- 
wealth), to  provide  a  pension  for  aged  mine  workers,  and  to  pro- 
vide a  fund  for  such  purposes  by  the  levy  and  collection  of  a 
special  tax  upon  all  coal  produced  in  this  State  (or  Common- 
wealth); extending  and  denning  the  duties  of  the  State  Auditor 


114  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

(or  other  designated  authority)  and  State  Treasurer,  and  fixing  the 
penalties  for  the  violation  of  the  provisions  of  this  Act. 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  General  Assembly  of  the  State  (or  Common- 
wealth) of 

Section  1.  The  Board  of  County  Commissioners  (or  the  legal 
taxing  authority)  of  each  County  in  this  State  (or  Commonwealth)  is 
hereby  required  at  the  time  of  making  the  annual  levy  of  State  and 
County  taxes  to  levy  a  special  tax  of  one  cent  per  ton  on  the  tonnage 
of  all  coal  mined  and  shipped  or  sold  locally  in  such  County;  such  tax 
shall  be  paid  to  the  Auditor  (or  other  designated  authority)  of  the  State 

(or  Commonwealth)  of  -  • quarterly  on  or  before  the 

twenty-fifth  days  of  January,  April,  July,  and  October  of  each  year  upon 
all  coal  mined  in  such  County  as  aforesaid  during  the  three  months  im- 
mediately preceding  the  month  in  which  such  payment  shall  be  made, 
said  moneys  to  be  placed  in  a  special  fund  as  hereinafter  provided. 

Sec.  2.  The  agent,  manager,  foreman  or  accountant  of  any  cor- 
poration, partnership,  association,  person  or  persons  engaged  in  mining 

coal  in  the  State  (or  Commonwealth)  of  shall,  on 

or  before  the  twenty-fifth  days  of  January,  April,  July,  and  October  of 
each  year,  make  report  to  the  State  Auditor  (or  other  designated  author- 
ity) as  to  the  amount  of  coal  mined  as  aforesaid  during  the  previous 
three  calendar  months  and  subject  to  the  tax  of  one  cent  per  ton;  such 
report  shall  be  verified  by  affidavit,  and  shall  be  accompanied  by  a 
certified  check  in  full  for  the  amount  of  the  tax  provided  in  Section  1 
of  this  Act. 

Sec.  3.  It  is  hereby  made  the  duty  of  the  State  Auditor  (or  such 
State  officer  or  department  as  may  be  designated  or  such  other  agency 
as  may  be  created)  to  receive  all  moneys  provided  for  in  this  Act  and 
to  make  proper  acknowledgment  of  the  receipt  of  such  moneys  to  the 
person  making  such  remittance.  The  Auditor  (or  other  agency)  shall 
pay  all  moneys  so  received  by  him  to  the  State  Treasurer,  who  shall 
keep  such  sums  in  safe  custody  in  a  separate  fund  to  be  known  as  the 
Employers'  Accident  Indemnity  Fund.  The  State  Treasurer  shall  invest 
the  surplus  of  said  fund  as  other  State  funds  are  invested,  and  all.  in- 
terest accruing  from  such  investments  shall  be  accredited  to  and  paid 
into  said  fund.  The  bonds  of  the  State  Treasurer  shall  be  liable  for 
such  funds,  and  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  State  Treasurer  to  pay  out 
such  fund  only  upon  the  warrant  of  the  State  Auditor  and  to  keep 
accurate  accounts  of  the  receipts  and  disbursements  of  such  money. 

Sec.  4.  All  workmen,  laborers,  and  employes  in  and  around  any 
coal  mines  or  in  and  around  any  coal  washers  in  which  coal  is  treated, 
or  in  and  around  any  river  tipple  handling  coal  within  the  State  (or 

Commonwealth)  of  shall  be  entitled  to  receive 

indemnity  for  all  injuries  caused  by  accidents  arising  out  of  and  in  the 
course  of  his  employment  in  and  about  any  such  mine,  coal  washer,  or 
coal  tipple,  and  a  monthly  benefit  during  disability  occasioned  by  old 
age,  upon  the  basis  hereinafter  set  forth,  it  being  intended  that  the 
average  wage  of  any  workman  hereinafter  referred  to  or  made  the  basis 
of  compensation  shall  be  the  average  monthly  wages  received  by  him 
during  a  period  of  five  years  immediately  preceding  such  accident,  in 
no  case,  however,  to  exceed  the  sum  of  $70  for  each  month,  and  in  case 
his  _  employment  in  his  then  position  has  not  extended  over  the  entire 
period  referred  to,  then  the  average  wage  paid  to  other  workmen  per- 
forming similar  duties  during  the  whole  of  said  period.  Such  monthly 
benefit,  however,  shall  in  no  case  be  more  than  $35  or  less  than  $25. 

First.  In  the  event  that  such  accident  results  within  thirty  (30)  days 
thereafter  in  the  death  of  such  workman,  his  legal  representatives  shall 
be  entitled  to  receive  from  said  indemnity  fund  compensation  upon  the 
following  basis:  The  legal  representatives  of  each  single  man  or  mar- 
ried man  not  living  with  or  supporting  his  family  shall  receive  from  said 
fund  the  sum  of  five  hundred  ($500)  dollars.  The  legal  representatives 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  115 

of  each  head  of  a  family  living  with  or  supporting  such  family  shall  re- 
ceive from  said  fund  the  sum  of  five  hundred  ($500)  dollars,  and  in  addi- 
tion thereto  a  monthly  benefit  for  and  during  the  term  of  three  years,  fol- 
lowing said  accident,  a  sum  equal  to  fifty  per  cent  of  such  workman's 
average  wages  plus  ten  per  cent  of  such  average  wages  for  each  child 
under  sixteen  years  of  age  at  the  time  such  benefits  are  payable  and 
ten  per  cent  of  such  wages  additional  for  five  or  more  years  of  continu- 
ous service  with  his  then  employer,  in  any  case  such  monthly  payments 
however  shall  not  exceed  the  average  wage  of  stfch  employe  nor  the 
total  sum  of  three  thousand  ($3,000)  dollars. 

Second.  In  the  event  that  such  injuries  shall  incapacitate  such 
workman  from  the  pursuance  of  his  usual  work  he  shall,  during  the 
period  of  such  incapacity,  receive  from  such  fund  a  monthly  benefit 
equal  to  one-half  of  the  amount  of  his  average  monthly  wages  during 
the  preceding  year  plus  ten  per  cent  of  such  wages  for  each  child  under 
sixteen  at  the  time  "such  benefits  are  payable  and  ten  per  cent  of  such 
wages  for  five  or  more  years  of  continuous  service  with  his  then  em- 
ployer, such  benefits,  however,  not  to  exceed  the  total  sum  of  two  thou- 
sand ($2,000)  dollars;  provided,  however,  that  if  death  shall  result  from 
said  injury  within  one  year  from  the  date  of  said  accident,  the  legal 
representatives  of  such  workman  shall  receive  from  such  fund  com- 
pensation upon  the  basis  provided  in  paragraph  one  hereof,  less  such 
sums  as  may  have  been  theretofore  paid  such  workman  under  the  pro- 
vision of  this  paragraph. 

Third.  It  is  further  provided  that  the  following  injuries  shall  en- 
title the  workman,  in  lieu  of  other  benefits  at  his  option,  to  compensa- 
tion on  the  following  basis: 

(A)  For  the  loss  of  one  hand,  twelve  months  wages. 

(B)  For  the  loss  of  one  arm,  eighteen  months  wages. 

(C)  For  the  loss  of  one  foot,  nine  months  wages. 

(D)  For  the  loss  of  one  leg,  twelve  months  wages. 

(E)  For  the  loss  of  one  eye,  six  months  wages. 

And  in  case  of  the  loss  of  both  hands  or  both  arms  or  both  feet  or 
both  legs  or  both  eyes,  he  shall  be  entitled  to  a  sum  equal  to  his  average 
wages  for  a  period  of  four  years,  not,  however,  in  any  case  to  exceed  the 
sum  of  three  thousand  ($3,000)  dollars. 

Fourth.  In  the  event  that  any  workman  who  has  been  employed 
for  a  period  of  25  years  in  the  coal  mining  industry,  the  last  ten  years  of 
which  he  shall  have  been  so  employed  within  the  State  (or  Common- 
wealth) of shall  have  reached  the  age  of  65  years  and 

shall  become  unable  to  perform  his  usual  labor  or  labor  of  any  sort 
about  any  mine,  washer,  or  tipple  by  reason  of  old  age,  he  shall  there- 
after be  entitled  to  receive  from  said  fund  a  sum  equal  to  50  per  cent 
of  his  average  monthly  wages  during  the  preceding  ten  years. 

Fifth.  In  determining  the  amount  of  the  monthly  benefits  to  be 
paid  under  the  provisions  of  this  Act,  regard  shall  be  had  to  the  differ- 
ence between  the  amount  of  the  average  monthly  wages  of  the  appli- 
cant before  the  disability  and  the  average  amount  such  workman  is  able 
to  earn  after  the  beginning  of  the  disability  on  account  of  which  such 
benefits  are  paid;  and  in  case  such  workman  shall  be  able  to  perform 
some  sort  of  labor  the  amount  of  wages  thus  received  for  partial  serv- 
ice shall  be  deducted  from  the  average  wages  upon  which  his  benefits 
would  otherwise  be  computed,  and  he  shall  receive  upon  such  difference 
the  percentages  to  which  he  would  be  entitled  to  receive  in  case  of 
total  disability. 

Any  workman  who  is  entitled  to  benefits  under  this  Act  or  the 
personal  representatives  of  any  workman  who  shall  have  been  killed  by 
such  accident  shall  file  with  the  State  Auditor  (or  any  other  agency 
authorized  to  administer  the  fund)  proof  of  such  claim  upon  such  form 
as  shall  be  required  by  the  said  State  Auditor  (or  other  agency),  such 
proof  to  be  sworn  to  by  such  applicant  and  by  three  disinterested  per- 
sons, one  of  whom  shall  be  a  practicing  physician,  and  each  of  whom 
shall  be  familiar  with  the  facts,  and  who  shall  separately  certify  under 


116  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

oath  their  belief  as  to  the  right  of  said  applicant  to  receive  the  benefits 
applied  for  under  the  provisions  of  the  Act.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the 
mine  superintendent  of  any  mine  at  which  an  accident  shall  occur,  and 
of  the  mining  inspector  of  the  district  in  which  such  mine  is  located, 
to  make  a  joint  report  to  the  State  Auditor  (or  other  designated  author- 
ity) of  the  facts  surrounding  such  accident,  and  of  all  facts  of  importance 
in  passing  upon  the  validity  of  the  claim  or  claims  upon  said  indemnity 
fund  growing  out  of  said  accident. 

Sixth.  The  State  Auditor,  when  proper  proof  has  been  made  of 
the  justice  of  any  such  claims,  shall  draw  his  warrant  payable  to  such 
beneficiary  upon  the  filing  with  him,  in  the  event  of  death,  the  acknowl- 
edgment of  the  legal  representative  of  such  workman  that  the  money 
so  received  is  in  full  satisfaction  of  all  claim  or  claims  which  said  appli- 
cant personally  or  as  such  representative  may  have  on  account  of  dam- 
age arising  from  the  injury  for  which  such  indemnity  is  paid;  and  in 
case  of  disability  the  acknowledgment  of  such  beneficiary  that  the  money 
so  received  is  in  full  settlement  of  all  claims  which  such  beneficiary  may 
have  on  account  of  such  injury  for  the  time  for  which  such  benefit  is 
paid. 

Sec.  5.  The  provision  made  for  indemnity  of  employes  under  this 
Act  is  and  shall  be  construed  as  being  in  lieu  of  and  in  satisfaction  of 
all  claims  for  indemnity  against  any  employer  by  any  employe  by  rea- 
son of  any  injury  received  in  the  course  of  his  employment,  and  the 
acceptance  of  any  benefit  under  the  provisions  of  this  Act  by  any  per- 
son or  persons  shall  constitute  a  bar  against  any  action  brought  by  any 
such  person  against  his  said  employer  on  account  of  any  such  acci- 
dental injury. 

Sec.  6.  The  institution  of  any  suit  in  law  or  equity  by  any  em- 
ploye against  his  employer  for  damages  on  account  of  personal  in- 
juries received  in  the  course  of  his  employment  as  aforesaid,  shall  con- 
stitute a  forfeiture  of  said  employe's  right  to  receive  indemnity  from 
the  fund  herein  provided  for  and  the  amount  to  which  said  employe 
would  in  the  absence  of  such  suit  be  entitled  to  receive  from  such  fund, 
and  in  addition  thereto  his  proper  court  costs  expended  in  defending 
such  suit  shall  be  paid  by  the  State  Auditor  (or  other  agency  authorized 
to  administer  the  fund)  to  said  defendant  employer  upon  the  termina- 
tion of  which  to  reimburse  him  to  that  extent  for  the  judgment  and 
costs  for  which  he  may  become  liable  in  any  such  suit;  the  total  amount 
of  such  payment,  however,  shall  not  exceed  the  sum  of  five  thousand 
($5,000)  dollars; 

Sec.  7.  In  the  event  that  the  State  Auditor  (or  other  agency 
authorized  to  administer  the  fund)  is  not  satisfied  as  to  the  jus- 
tice of  any  claim  made  for  indemnity  from  said  fund,  he  is  author- 
ized to  require  such  additional  proof  as  in  his  judgment  is  necessary  to 
fairly  establish  the  rightfulness  of  the  claim  so  made.  If  any  workman 
applying  for  benefits  under  this  act  refuses  to  submit  himself  to  any 
required  examination  or  in  any  way  obstructs  the  same,  his  right  to 
compensation  under  this  Act  shall  be  suspended  until  such  examination 
shall  take  place  and  shall  absolutely  cease  unless  he  submits  himself 
to  such  examination  within  one  month  after  being  requested  to  do  so. 

Sec.  8.  There  is  hereby  created  an  Advisory  Board  to  consist  of 
three  members  to  be  appointed  by  the  Governor,  by  and  with  the  ad- 
vice and  consent  of  the  Senate,  one  of  whom  shall  be  a  representative 
coal  operator  and  one  a  representative  coal  miner,  the  members  of  such 
board  to  be  appointed  for  three  years,  and  to  receive  a  compensation 
of  five  dollars  per  diem,  together  with  their  necessary  traveling  and 
hotel  expenses,  for  the  time  necessarily  engaged  in  performing  the  said 
duties.  Such  Advisory  Board  shall  have  general  control  and  super- 
vision of  the  administration  and  execution  of  the  provisions  of  this 
Act,  shall  hear  and  determine  all  disputes  arising  between  the  State 
Auditor  (or  designated  agency)  and  claimants  for  indemnity  here- 
under,  and  shall  make  annual  report  to  the  Governor  of  the  condition, 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  117 

operation  and  affairs  of  such  fund  at  such  time  as  may  be  designated 
by  the  Governor.  It  is  hereby  made  the  duty  of  the  Auditor  (or  desig- 
nated agency)  and  Treasurer  to  make  report  to  said  Advisory  Board 
at  all  reasonable  times  on  demand  of  the  condition  and  affairs  of  such 
fund  and  of  all  acts  by  them  performed  under  the  provision  of  this  Act. 

Sec.  9.  Should  the  proceeds  of  the  special  tax  herein  provided  by 
this  Act  at  the  end  of  three  years  after  the  going  into  effect  of  this 
Act  be  found  to  be  in  excess  of  the  amount  necessary  to  pay  the  in- 
demnity provided  for  in  this  Act,  the  State  Auditor  is  hereby  authorized 
to  change  the  amount  of  the  levy  herein  provided  for  and  the  Board 
of  County  Commissioners  of  each  county  in  the  Commonwealth,  upon 
being  notified  in  writing  of  such  change,  shall  thereafter  be  authorized 
and  required  to  make  levy  of  the  amount  of  tax  so  specified  by  said 
Auditor  (or  other  designated  authority)  as  being  sufficient  to  pay  the 
indemnity  provided  for  in  this  Act,  and  the  rates  so  fixed  by  said  Audi- 
tor (or  designated  authority)  shall  be  annually  levied  as  ordered  by  said 
Auditor,  which  levy  shall  in  no  case  exceed  the  amount  provided  in 
Section  1  of  this  Act. 

Sec.  10.  It  shall  not  be  lawful  for  any  attorney  or  agent  of  any 
workman  or  the  legal  representative  of  any  deceased  workman  entitled 
to  indemnity  under  the  provisions  of  this  Act  to  receive  as  a  fee  for  his 
services  in  connection  with  securing  the  payment  of  such  indemnity  a 
sum  in  excess  of  five  per  cent  (5%)  of  the  amount  collected,  and  in  no 
case  to  exceed  $25  for  all  services  rendered  in  connection  with  the  pay- 
ment of  indemnity  for  any  one  accidental  injury. 

Sec.  11.  Any  manager,  agent,  foreman,  accountant,  person  or  per- 
sons who  represent  any  corporation,  partnership,  association,  person  or 
persons  engaged  in  the  mining  or  management  of  any  coal  mines  or 

coal   washers    in    the    State    (or    Commonwealth)    of    ,    or 

any  person  or  persons  liable  for  the  payments  herein  provided  for  who 
shall  violate  the  intent  of  this  Act  by  inaccurate  reports  of  tonnage  of 
coal  produced  by  them,  or  who  in  any  manner  hinders  or  obstructs  the 
Auditor  of  State  in  ascertaining  facts  bearing  up  any  case  provided  for 
in  this  Act,  or  who  may  refuse  correctly  to  .make  out  such  reports  as 
are  required  by  this  Act,  or  as  requested  by  the  Auditor  of  State,  or 
submit  to  its  provisions,  when  liable  therefor,  and  any  person  who  shall 
knowingly  and  willfully  assist  an  applicant  in  a  fraudulent  attempt  to 
obtain  benefits  hereunder,  shall  be  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor  and  shall 
be  fined  for  each  offense  the  sum  of  not  less  than  $100  nor  more  than 
$500  and  be  imprisoned  in  the  county  jail  for  a  period  of  not  less  than 
one  month  nor  more  than  six  months,  or  by  both  fine  and  imprisonment. 
The  proceeds  of  all  fines  collected  under  the  provisions  of  this  Act  shall 
be  forwarded  to  the  State  Treasurer  and  by  him  accredited  to  the  Em- 
ployers' Accident  Indemnity  Fund. 

Sec.  12.  No  indemnity  or  benefit  shall  under  the  provisions  of 
this  Act  be  due  or  payable  where  the  disability  is  due  to  the  willful 
carelessness  or  gross  misconduct  of  the  employe,  or  unless  such  dis- 
ability shall  continue  for  more  than  seven  days,  and  every  claimant  is 
hereby  required  to  give  notice  of  such  claim  to  the  State  Auditor  (or 
other  designated  agency)  within  thirty  days  after  the  happenings  of 
such  accident. 

Sec.  13.  All  benefits  and  indemnity  provided  for  by  this  Act  shall 
be  paid  only  to  the  beneficiaries  or  to  their  legal  representatives  other 
than  assignees,  and  no  benefits  under  this  Act  shall  be  assignable  or 
subject  to  attachment  or  execution  or  be  liable  in  any  way  for  any  debt 
of  any  workman  on  account  of  whose  disability  such  indemnity  is  pay- 
able. 

Sec.   14.     The  tax  herein  provided   for  shall  be  due  and  payable 

upon  all  coal  mined  in  the  State  (or  Commonwealth)  of  

on  and  after  the  first  day  of  October,  1911;  the  indemnity  herein  pro- 
vided shall  apply  to  all  accidental  injuries  occurring  after  January  1,  1912. 


118  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

Sec.  15.  All  expenses  of  administration  of  the  provisions  of  this 
Act  shall  be  a  charge  against  the  State  and  shall  be  provided  for  by 
suitable  appropriation  by  the  General  Assembly. 

Sec.  16.  This  Act  shall  be  in  full  force  and  effect  on  and  after  its 
passage. 

Report  of  the  Advisory  Committee  on  Mineral   Statistics. 

George  W.  Riter,  Salt  Lake  City,  Utah,  Chairman. 
To  the  American  Mining  Congress,  Chicago,  111. 

Gentlemen:  Your  Advisory  Committee  on  Mineral  Statistics  pre- 
sents its  first  progress  report  after  having  been  in  existence  as  a  com- 
mittee for  only  part  of  a  year. 

The  Committee  owes  its  existence  to  the  growing  regard  for  ac- 
curate mineral  statistics,  not  only  for  those  dealing  with  mineral  pro- 
duction, but  even  more  for  those  dealing  with  economic  results.  The 
investing  public  now  demands  data  covering  a  wider  range  than  ever 
before.  Moreover,  there  is  a  feeling  that  the  attitude  of  the  federal  gov- 
ernment with  reference  to  the  unsold  mineral  lands  of  the  public  domain, 
and  also  with  reference  to  a  protective  tariff  on  mineral  products,  will 
hinge  on  the  more  recent  economic  history  of  the  mineral  industry  in 
its  various  branches. 

In  discussing  the  mineral  resources  of  our  country,  the  word 
"Conservation"  is  being  used  with  increasing  frequentcy.  .Whatever 
meaning  be  placed  on  this  word,  wise  legislation  can  hardly  be  reached 
in  the  absence  of  an  accurate  record  of  the  results  attained  in  recent 
years  in  the  various  branches  of  the  mineral  industry.  Unfortunately, 
this  record  is  far  from  complete,  and  the  purpose  of  this  committee  is 
to  encourage  the  completion  of  the  record  by  those  who  have  the  means 
of  doing  so.  The  statistics  on  gold  and  silver  afford  an  interesting 
case  in  point.  Perhaps  the  best  available  history  of  this  branch  of  the 
mineral  industry  is  to  be  found  in  the  report  of  the  Special  Census  of 
Mines  and  Quarries  for  1902.* 

According  to  this  report,  the  gold  and  silver  mines  of  the  United 
States  (including  argentiferous  lead  mines)  taken  collectively,  do  not 
pay  their  own  way.  It  appears  (Table  1,  page  510),  that  producing 
mines,  2,992  in  number,  sold  their  product  for  the  year  for  $18,644,400 
above  the  cost  of  production,  but  that  non-producing  concerns,  listed 
to  the  number  of  3,252,  spent  $21,551,358,  without  getting  any  returns. 
The  conclusion  is  that  the  gold-silver-lead  mining  industry  fell  some 
$2,906,958  behind  for  the  year.  Omitting  placer  mines  from  the  com- 
putation, the  deficit  is  much  greater.  If  the  report  falls  short  of  the 
truth,  more  than  likely  it  does  so  in  not  disclosing  the  whole  amount 
spent  on  non-producing  properties,  because  mines  having  no  production 
are  more  apt  to  escape  making  returns.  But  the  trouble  with  the  figures 
is  that  they  are  all  lumped  together. 

Your  committee  has  therefore  suggested  to  the  Bureau  of  the 
Census  that  in  compiling  the  returns  gathered  in  1910  from  metal  mines, 
the  data  be  handled  so  as  to  make  separate  tabulations  for  mines  that 
are  profit-paying  and  for  those  that  are  non-profit-paying;  also,  with 
special  reference  to  gold,  silver  and  silver-lead  mines,  that  the  data  be 
tabulated  so  as  to  group  the  mines  according  to  the  nature  of  their  out- 
put. The  Director  of  the  Census  promises  to  follow  this  suggestion  so 
far  as  may  be  practicable,  and  announces  that  every  suggestion  that  is 
made  with  a  view  to  making  the  census  reports  a  source  of  useful  in- 
formation to  practical  mining  men,  will  be  welcomed  by  him.  We  are 
pleased  to  report  that  a  similar  attitude  is  assumed  by  the  United 
States  Geological  Survey.  Indeed,  the  compilation  and  publication  of 

*Special  Report  of  the  Census  Office.  Mines  &  Quarries,  1902,  1, 
123  pages. 


AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS  119 

statistics  of  better  sort  seems  to  depend  entirely  on  the  willingness  of 
producers  to  keep  accurate  accounts  and  to  report  their  data  to  com- 
piling offices. 

At  the  instance  of  your  committee,  acting  through  members  of  the 
Senate  Committee  on  Mines  and  Mining,  the  practice  of  the  General 
Land  Office  with  reference  to  mineral  survey  plats  has  been  modified 
so  that  all  plats  will  hereafter  be  duplicated  by  photographic  or  print- 
ing processes,  instead  of  making  each  copy  long-hand,  as  was  the  cus- 
tom for  so  many  years.  The  new  rule  will  effect  a  great  saving  in  time 
and  labor,  as  well  as  marked  decrease  in  the  charges  made  against 
each  individual  applicant  for  patent  to  mineral  land. 

It  is  of  course  impossible  for  any  one  committee  or  set  of  officials 
to  decide  just  what  statistics  ought  to  be  compiled  for  the  various 
branches  of  an  industry  so  vast  as  that  of  mining.  The  best  the  com- 
mittee can  do  is  to  pave  the  way  for  closer  relations  between  producers 
and  statisticians,  and  to  impress  the  idea  on  every  individual  producer 
that  suggestions  and  criticisms  will  be  welcomed  by  the  statistical  offices 
of  the  federal  government,  if  made  in  a  spirit  of  helpfulness,  and  with 
a  view  to  making  the  published  reports  of  more  practical  value. 

Report  of  the  Committee  on  General  Revision  of  the  Mineral  Land  Laws. 

E.   B.   Kirby,  St.   Louis,  Mo.,  Chairman. 

The  Committee  had  assigned  to  it  the  work  of  securing  action  from 
the  Congress  of  the  United  States,  upon  the  request  of  the  American 
Mining  Congress  for  a  general  revision  of  the  mineral  land  laws.  By 
the  time  the  list  of  committee  members  had  been  appointed  and  had 
conferred  and  agreed  upon  their  plans,  the  winter  session  of  Congress 
was  so  near  its  close,  that  it  was  found  that  no  effective  action  was 
then  possible.  During  the  special  summer  session  there  was  a  general 
understanding  in  the  House  and  Senate  that  no  general  legislation  was 
to  be  introduced,  and  this  understanding  prevented  the  consideration  of 
our  measure.  It  was,  therefore,  decided  to  undertake  it  early  in  the 
regular  session  this  winter,  at  which  time  a  joint  resolution  on  the 
following  lines  will  be  introduced  through  our  friends  in  Congress: 

That Committee is  instructed  to  pre- 
pare and  submit  at  this  session  a  mode  of  procedure,  whereby  Con- 
gress may  undertake  a  general  revision  of  the  mineral  land  laws 
of  United  States  in  the  way  which  will  best  promote  the  public 
welfare  and  meet  the  peculiar  needs  of  the  Mining  Industry.  The 
plan  recommended  should  provide  a  practical  means  whereby  Con- 
gress may  utilize  the  best  experience  and  judgment  available  in  the 
industry  and  which  will  give  the  mining  regions  of  the  United 
States  and  Alaska  ample  opportunity  for  public  hearings  and  the 
discussion  of  remedies. 

In  the  meantime,  your  Committee  has  taken  up  the  matter  with 
the  governors  and  the  United  States  senators  and  representatives  of 
the  western  states  and  territories  'affected.  It  has  informed  them  of 
the  request  of  the  American  Mining  Congress  for  a  general  revision 
and  its  reasons  therefore,  and  of  the  aforesaid  joint  resolution  to  be 
introduced  at  the  next  session.  The  replies  show  that  in  this  under- 
taking the  American  Mining  Congress  has  not  only  no  opposition,  but 
the  general  approval  and  support  of  the  public  men  of  western  states, 
while  a  number  of  them  show  a  keen  personal  interest  in  the  matter. 
It  is  clear  that  with  the  support  promised  and  the  non-partisan  nature 
of  the  measure,  that  there  will  be  effective  action  by  Congress  at  the 
next  session. 

After  Congress  has  empowered  some  committee  to  act,  your 
Committee  hopes  to  have  the  opportunity  of  presenting  to  it,  such 
detailed  information  and  suggestions  as  may  aid  in  preparing  a  plan, 
whether  for  a  Commission  or  otherwise,  which  will  .be  satisfactory  to 
Congress  and  accomplish  the  ends  desired.  Your  Committee  believes 


120  OFFICIAL  PROCEEDINGS 

that  this  may  be  secured  through  a  wisely  selected  commission, 
authorized  to  draft  a  revised  code  for  the  use  of  Congress.  This  com- 
mission should  hold  public  hearings  in  the  principal  mining  centers  of 
the  west  and  Alaska.  It  should  call  before  it,  men  prominent  for  their 
knowledge  of  prospecting,  of  claim  locations,  of  mine  operating,  mine 
litigation,  and  the  history  of  mining  laws,  and  should  invite  opinions 
from  the  public,  bearing  upon  the  specific  points  at  issue.  The  authori- 
ties and  experience  of  other  mining  countries  should  also  be  consulted 
and  the  recommendations  of  the  commission  should  be  presented  in 
the  forms  of  a  fully  drafted  code. 

.  .It  is  clear  that  there  is  a  best  practical  solution  for  each  one  of 
the  difficult  problems  involved  in  a  general  revision  of  the  mineral  land 
laws,  but  in  order  to  determine  these  best  solutions,  all  opinions  must 
be  brought  to  a  focus  before  some  authoritative  body  which  has  the 
power  of  decision.  Moreover,  in  order  to  assure  the  general  approval 
and  acceptance  of  reforms  affecting  so  many  varied  interests,  the  per- 
sonnel of  this  body  should  be  such  as  to  command  confidence  and  the 
mining  communities  should  have  opportunities  to  present  their  views 
before  it.  There  is  a  wealth  of  learning  and  practical  experience  in  the 
country,  which  is  availablbe  for  the  work  of  framing  a  revised  code,  but 
it  is  distributed  among  many  men  and  must  be  focused  by  the  plan 
indicated.  i  I  .  '  I.  *! 

In  order  to  properly  follow  up  the  business  now  under  way,  your 
Committee  asks  that  it  be  authorized  to  continue  its  work  during  the 
coming  year.  A  memorandum  is  attached,  explaining  the  request  of 
the  American  Mining  Congress  for  revision  and  the  reasons  for  its 
actions. 

Report  of  the  Committee  on  Standardization  of  Elactrical  Equipment  in 

Metal  Mines. 
General  Irving  Hale,  Denver,  Colo.,  Chairman. 

Your  committee  on  the  standardization  of  electrical  equipment  in 
metal  mines  begs  to  report  that  owing  to  the  sudden  and  severe  sickness 
of  its  chairman,  General  Irving  Hale,  on  September  29,  the  work  of  this 
committee  was  impeded  to  such  an  extent  that  it  is  impossible  for  your 
committee  to  submit  detailed  findings  herewith. 

Yours  truly, 

H.  S.  SANDS. 
CHARLES  A.   CHASE. 


President's  Annual  Address. 

BY   JOHN   DERN, 
SALT   LAKE  CITY,   UTAH. 


As  representatives  of  the  mineral  industry  of  the  United  States, 
we  are  assembled  in  the  great  enterprising,  truly  American  City  of 
Chicago,  in  our  fourteenth  annual  session. 

It  seems  to  surprise  some  persons  that  a  mining  congress  should 
be  held  in  Chicago,  instead  of  in  some  so-called  mining'  center.  I 
hope  to  convince  you,  before  I  finish,  that  the  mining  industry  does 
not  deserve  the  limitations  that  many  minds  impose  upon  it,  but 
that,  on  the  contrary,  its  scope  is  so  broad  that  any  community 
where  civilized  men  dwell  together  is  an  appropriate  place  to  hold 
a  mining  congress. 

But  aside  from  that,  our  Illinois  friends,  in  view  of  the  statis- 
tics that  were  given  us  by  Mr.  David  Ross,  at  Los  Angeles,  last 
year  would  probably  resent  the  insinuation  that  theirs  is  not  a 
mining  state  Mr.  Ross  informed  us  that  Illinois  ranks  third  among 
the  twenty-live  coal  producing  states  of  the  Union.  He  also  claimed 
that  his  state  had  mined  733  million  tons  of  coal  in  the  past  one 
hundred  years,  and  that  it  has  200  billion  tons  left,  which  I  for  one 
am  ready  to  concede  is  a  large  quantity  of  coal. 

For  fourteen  years  the  American  Mining  Congress  has  been 
working  to  educate  the  general  public  to  the  importance  of  the 
mining  industry,  and  to  teach  the  men  engaged  in  the  various 
branches  of  that  industry  that  they  have  wants  and  needs,  which 
can  best  be  advanced  by  organized  co-operation.  I  congratulate 
the  members  on  the  progress  that  has  been  made,  the  prestige  that 
has  been  acquired,  and  the  results  that  have  been  achieved.  As  one 
who  has  been  connected  with  the  movement  from  its  inception,  I  can 
appreciate  the  difference  between  the  early  meetings  and  this  en- 
thusiastic and  representative  gathering.  Not  that  there  was  any 
lack  of  enthusiasm  at  the  beginning;  not  that  I  would  detract  from 
the  honor  that  is  due  the  patient,  energetic  optimists  who  did  the 
pioneer  work,  and  kept  the  Mining  Congress  alive  when  its  excuses 
for  existence,  measured  by  results,  seemed  few  and  weak;  but  we 
have  grown  and  have  developed  into  a  power.  Let  us  hope  that 
this  power  will  always  be  used  for  good. 


122        PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

In  the  beginning,  our  chief,  almost  our  sole  object  was  to 
secure  the  establishment  of  a  Department  of  Mines  in  the  National 
GoveVnment — a  worthy  purpose,  and  one  that  has  even  yet  not 
been  fully  achieved,  although  we  have  been  instrumental  in  causing 
the  first  step  to  be  taken.  At  our  annual  sessions,  this  topic  was 
always  uppermost  in  our  thoughts,  and  aside  from  that  we  had 
no  'very  definite  policy.  Many  other  subjects  were  discussed,  but 
we  can  now  see  that  they  were  more  for  the  purpose  of  filling  in  the 
time  than  for  the  promotion  of  any  sound,  logical  program.  The 
result  was  that  the  American  Mining  Congress  was  not  taken  se- 
riously in  many  quarters.  Prominent  mine  operators  denied  the 
right  of  this  organization  to  speak  for  the  industry  as  a  whole. 
Influential  journals  jeered  at  our  efforts,  and  derided  the  personnel 
of  the  Congress.  Doubtless  the  criticisms  were  in  the  main  justi- 
fied, but  the  American  Mining  Congress  is  not  the  only  thing  that 
has  had  humble  beginnings. 

Work  Continues  Despite  Obstacles. 

At  any  rate,  in  spite  of  these  discouragements  and  obstacles, 
the  work  was  kept  up,  the  methods  of  procedure  were  improved, 
and  more  definite  aims  were  evolved.  The  idealistic  leadership  of 
Judge  Richards,  who  for  seven  troublous  years  was  president,  fol- 
lowed by  the  efficient  administration  of  Dr.  Buckley  last  year,  and 
always  supported  by  the  energy  and  capacity  of  our  Secretary,  Mr. 
Callbreath,  gradually  produced  an  association  that  justified  itself, 
and  won  the  respect  and  allegiance  of  many  who  had  formerly 
looked  at  it  askance,  but  who  are  now  among  our  most  valuable 
members.  In  the  words  of  Judge  Richards,  the  Mining  Congress 
has  "made  itself  respectable,"  and  it  now  claims  that  it  truly  repre- 
sents the  mining  industry  of  the  United  States,  and  that  its  delibera- 
tions deserve  the  consideration  due  the  combined  voice  of  those 
who  are  engaged  in  mining  pursuits  under  the  American  flag. 

I  make  this  statement  confidently,  but  not  boastingly.  It  is 
true  that  our  membership  is  not  yet  as  large  as  it  ought  to  be,  or 
as  it  would  be  if  we  had  induced  all  classes  of  mine  operators  and 
workers  to  give  us  their  active  support,  as  they  will  surely  do  when 
they  awake  to  the  fact  that  it  is  to  their  own  interest  to  do  so. 
We  do  not  wish  to  sail  under  false  colors,  or  claim  to  be  what  we 
are  not.  We  are  very  desirous  of  getting  the  eastern  coal  miners, 
and  oil  miners  and  iron  miners  to  ally  themselves  more  heartily 
with  the  western  metal  miners,  because  our  interests  are  mutual 


PRESIDENT'S    ANNUAL    ADDRESS  123 

and  identical,  and  in  union  and  co-operation  will  be  found  the 
strength  to  carry  out  the  great  purposes  this  Congress  has  in  view. 
We  candidly,  if  regretfully,  admit  that,  as  our  labor  union  friends 
would  say,  we  have  many  fields  yet  to  organize. 

Mining  Congress  Alone  in  Field. 

Great  numbers  of  men  engaged  in  branches  of  the  mineral 
industry  have  not  affiliated  with  the  American  Mining  Congress, 
and  give  no  thought  to  its  existence.  The  misfortune  is  theirs  more 
than  ours,  and  sooner  or  later  they  will  realize  it,  and  come  in  and 
do  their  share  for  the  common  good.  But  already  we  claim  to 
speak  with  the  voice  of  authority,  because  there  is  no  rival  organiza- 
tion that  assumes  to  occupy  the  same  field  as  we.  Societies  such 
as  the  American  Institute  of  Mining  Engineers  are  technical  in 
their  objects  and  work,  which  we  are  not.  That  is,  they  are  con- 
cerned with  the  scientific  problems  of  practical  mining  and  metal- 
lurgy— questions  in  which  we  are  all  vitally  interested,  but  the 
details  of  which  this  Congress  does  not  pretend  to  make  its  special 
field.  Such  societies,  therefore,  have  our  heartiest  good-will  and 
admiration,  and  they  have  not  the  slightest  reason  for  failing  to 
co-operate  with  us,  and  give  us  the  benefit  of  their  invaluable  aid. 
Nothing  would  please  us  better  than  to  have  all  the  members  'of 
these  societies  join  the  American  Mining  Congress,  so  that  they 
may  have  the  opportunity  to  do  their  share  in  advancing  the  larger, 
general  interests  of  mining,  instead  of  devoting  their  energies  and 
talents  exclusively  to  the  details  of  their  own  specialty.  Many  of 
these  scientific  men  we  already  have  with  us.  We  need  more  of 
them,  and  we  want  all  we  can  get.  The  American  Mining  Congress 
requires  the  best  thought  and  most  advanced  ideas  that  can  be  had. 

But  what  is  nreant  by  "the  larger  interests  of  mining,"  to  which 
I  have  just  alluded?  In  other  words,  what  are  the  specific  objects 
of  the  American  Mining  Congress?  Dr.  Buckley  said  last  year  that 
they  were  "to  foster  and  promote  mining  in  all  its  various  branches," 
and  perhaps  they  could  not  be  more  concisely  stated.  This  state- 
ment, however,  is  so  general  as  to  be  vague;  and  yet  to  particularize 
would  be  to  set  limitations  and  restrictions  that  would  be  hard  to 
define,  and  that  would  certainly  vary  with  conditions  from  time  to 
time.  As  questions  come  up,  be  they  political,  social,  economic  or 
scientific,  this  Congress  will  discuss  them,  so  far  as  they  affect  or 
relate  to  the  mining  industry.  But  to  give  some  conception  of  the 
activities  of  the  Congress,  I  might  mention  a  few  of  the  subjects 
that  have  received  attention,  and  some  that  are  still  before  us. 


124        PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

I  have  already  said  that  the  scientific  and  technological  prob- 
lems of  mining  are  not  the  ones  we  aim  to  discuss.  But  to  encourage 
work  of  this  nature,  so  that  efficiency  may  be  increased  and  waste 
decreased  in  mining  and  metallurgical  operations,  is  one  of  our  chief 
objects  To  induce  the  Government  to  help  the  miner  as  it  helps 
the  farmer  is  one  of  the  things  we  have  constantly  striven  for,  and 
we  expect  to  keep  hammering  away  at  it  until  we  get  what  we 
deserve. 

Uniform  Mining  Laws. 

To  secure  the  enactment  of  uniform  mining  laws  in  the  sev- 
eral states,  to  the  end  that  mine  accidents  may  be  minimized  and 
the  health  of  workers  protected,  is  a  subject  that  has  been  most 
carefully  investigated  by  this  Congress,  and  a  model  law  has  been 
prepared,  that  we  believe  could  well  be  used  as  a  basis  by  all  states, 
with  such  modifications  as  local  conditions  might  require. 

To  eliminate  the  fake  promoter  and  all  other  sorts  of  mine 
frauds  is  another  end  we  have  in  view.  To  work  for  true  con- 
servation, and  to  aid  the  government  in  formulating  a  fair  and 
just  Alaskan  policy,  are  objects  to  which  we  are  committed.  We 
have  had  committees  to  investigate  sm/elter  rates,  railroad  rates, 
vertical  side  line  law,  general  revision  of  mineral  land  laws,  coal 
tax  insurance  fund,  and  the  standardization  of  electrical  equipment. 
It  is  apparent  from  this  partial  list  of  subjects  that  our  activities 
have  touched  both  our  internal  affairs  and  our  external  interests. 
To  a  few  of  the  subjects  that  I  have  mentioned  I  will  presently 
make  more  extended  reference,  but  I  have  merely  been  trying  to 
show  that  the  American  Mining  Congress  makes  it  its  province  to 
consider  any  sort  of  a  question  that  in  any  way  affects  the  mining 
industry. 

When  we  speak  of  the  mining  industry  a  gooicl  many  of  us  are 
prone  to  think  only  of  gold,  silver,  copper,  lead,  zinc,  coal  and  iron 
mines.  We  should  rid  ourselves  of  this  narrow  conception.  The 
American  Mining  Congress  aspires  to  stand  for  the  mineral  in- 
dustry in  its  broadest  sense.  All  of  nature's  bounties  come  from 
the  soil,  and  the  products  are  of  two  classes,  vegetable  and  mineral. 
Everything  that  is  not  vegetable  is  mlineral,  and  should  be  classed 
in  the  mineral  industry.  The  scope  of  mining  is  greatly  increased 
when  we  add  such  other  metals  as  platinum,  tin,  aluminum,  anti- 
mony, tungsten,  quicksilver,  bismuth,  nickel,  magnesium,  manga- 
nese, and  the  gems  and  precious  stones;  but  it  is  very  much  more 
enlarged  when  we  consider  the  non-metallic  minerals,  including 
petroleum,  natural  gas,  salt,  gypsum,  lime,  cement,  asphalt,  sand, 


PRESIDENT'S    ANNUAL    ADDRESS  125 

gravel,  stone,  slate,  phosphates,  rocks,  sulphur,  asbestos,  graphite, 
mica,  pigments,  fertilizers,  abrasive  materials,  chemical  materials, 
mineral  waters,  and  the  clay  products,  which  embrace  the  brick  and 
tile  industry.  These  and  many  more  are  just  as  much  parts  of  the 
mineral  industry  as  are  the  seven  first  mentioned  metals,  and  when ' 
considered  in  this  proper  light,  our  industry  assumes  truly  majestic 
proportions. 

Broad  Aspect  of  Mining. 

The  mere  mention  of  this  broad  aspect  of  mining  ought  to  be 
sufficient  to  silence  those  superficial  critics  who  insist  upon  calling 
mining  a  species  of  gambling.  It  is  nothing  of  .the  kind.  It  is, 
in  its  every  phrase,  a  legitimate,  useful,  honorable  business,  and  it 
forms  the  basis  of  many  of  our  greatest  enterprises.  There  are 
frauds  in  mining,  but  so  are  there  in  farming.  There  are  fakirs 
in  mining,  but  so  are  there  in  manufacturing.  There  are  crooks 
in  the  mining  business,  but  so  are  there  in  banking  and  railroading. 
And  yet,  in  the  minds  of  many  well-meaning  and  honest  people, 
mining  seems  to  be  judged  by  its  parasites  and  by  those  who  in  no 
way  stand  for  real  mining. 

I  apprehend  right  here  in  Chicago,  if  a  banker  learns  that  one 
of  his  customers  is  interested  in  a  mine,  he  will  at  once  conclude 
that  that  customer  is  a  speculator  and  a  gambler,  and  that  his  credit 
must  be  watched  with  unusual  ca're.  Now,  it  is  needless  for  us 
merely  to  decry  this  attitude.  We  know  that  it  exists,  and  if  we  are 
candid  we  must  admit  that  there  is  a  reason  for  it.  The  reason  is 
to  be  found  in  the  insane  mining  booms  that  crop  up  from  time  to 
time,  when  men  let  their  imaginations  run  riot,  disregard  all  laws 
of  probability,  and  make  the  most  absurd  representations  and  prom- 
ises. That  is  when  the  fakir  and  the  fraudulent  promoter  get  in 
their  deadly  work.  And  when  the  bubble  bursts,  and  things  get 
back  into  their  proper  perspective,  when  the  unfortunate  dupes 
have  lost  their  money,  they  do  not  realize  their  own  folly  in  listen- 
ing to  the  wily  stranger,  but  they  hurl  imprecations  at  mining,  as  the 
quintessence  of  all  that  is  crooked,  and  rotten  and  evil.  The  Amer- 
ican Mining  Congress  can  perform  no  greater  service  for  itself  and 
for  the  public  than  to  eliminate  mining  frauds,  and  to  see  that  the 
investor  in  mining  securities  gets  a  square  deal  and  a  "run  for  his 
money." 

These  frauds  are,  of  course,  principally  attached  to  metal  min- 
ing, and  the  stigma  therefore  rests  chiefly  upon  that  important  in- 
dustry. I  will  not  go  so  far  as  to  say  that  mining  is  as  safe  as  any 
other  business,  but  I  will  say  that.,  when  conducted  with  proper 


126        PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

skill,  knowledge  and  ability,  its  risks  can  be  so  greatly  minimized 
as  to  make  it  a  relatively  safe  venture.  It  cannot  be  denied  that 
the  development  of  a  new  mine  has  a  large  element  of  chance.  In 
spite  of  favorable  geological  conditions,  the  outcome  is  often  dis- 
appointing. It  is  impossible  to  see  into  the  ground,  and  opinions 
can  only  be  based  upon  visible  evidence.  But  the  possible  returns 
are  so  large  that  investors  are  willing  to  take  these  chances.  Those 
who  put  their  money  into  a  mining  scheme  with  a  full  knowledge 
of  these  conditions  seldom  complain  if  failure  results,  provided 
they  are  sure  their  money  has  been  honestly  and  intelligently  ex- 
pended. That  is  what  we  are  endeavoring  to  bring  about,  and  when 
we  succeed  metal  mining  will  move  up  to  its  proper  place  as  a  con- 
servative, legitimate  business. 

Alaskan  Situation. 

The  American  Mining  Congress  has  for  several  years  taken  a 
special  interest  in  Alaska,  and  any  matter  concerning  that  won- 
derful but  apparently  distressed  country  is  sure  of  our  prompt  and 
sympathetic  attention.  The  true  status  of  the  situation  in  Alaska 
seems  to  be  hard  to  find  out.  So  many  conflicting  reports  are  re- 
ceived that  the  average  citizen  finds  himself  perplexed  and  in  doubt 
about  the  facts.  One  day  we  hear  that  the  coal  deposits  of  Alaska 
are  fabulously  large,  and  of  the  finest  grade  in  the  world.  The 
next  day  we  are  told  that  the  quantity  of  coal  has  been  grossly 
overestimated,  and  that  it  is  not  very  good  coal  anyway.  From  one 
source  comes  the  information  that  its  bodies  of  copper  ore  are  the 
greatest  ever  discovered,  and  from  another  source  we  learn  that 
these  mines  are  vastly  overrated,  and  that  they  cannot  compete 
with  the  mines  of  the  States.  First  we  are  startled  by  a  tremen- 
dous scandal  about  certain  private  interests  grabbing  and  monopo- 
lizing the  great  harbor  of  Controller  Bay,  and  then  we  get  sets  of 
resolutions  from  the  city  council  and  chamber  of  commerce  of 
the  city  of  Cordova,  stoutly  maintaining  that  Controller  Bay  is  no 
harbor  at  all,  and  that  Cordova  Bay  is  the  only  feasible  water  out- 
let. On  the  one  hand  we  are  solemnly  assured  that  the  people  of 
Alaska  fervently  desire  home  rule,  and  the  next  returning  traveler 
reports  that  he  was  unable  to  find  any  real  sentiment  of  that  kind. 

These  conflicting  statements  are  very  disconcerting  to  the  man 
who  is  trying  to  keep  himself  in  a  judicial  frame  of  mind,  so  as  to 
judge  fairly  and  avoid  prejudice.  What  we  seem  to  need  more 
than  anything  else  is  accurate,  reliable,  unbiased  information.  What 
can  we  do  until  we  get  the  facts?  I  am  convinced  that  the  people 
of  the  United  States,  through  their  government,  will  do  substan- 


PRESIDENT'S    ANNUAL    ADDRESS.  127 

tial  justice  to  their  countrymen  in  Alaska,  just  as  soon  as  they  have 
indisputable  data  about  conditions  as  they  actually  exist.  A  very 
appropriate  step  would  appear  to  be  the  appointment  of  a  special 
congressional  committee,  or  some  sort  of  a  governmental  commis- 
sion, composed  of  disinterested  men  of  distinguished  ability  and 
unquestioned  probity,  to  make  a  thorough  investigation  of  Alaskan 
conditions.  The  mission  of  these  men  should  not  be  to  bolster  up 
the  pet  views  of  any  one  man  or  set  of  men,  but  they  should  go  for 
the  sole  purpose  of  gathering  information,  so  that  the  government 
of  the  United  States  can  act  intelligently  and  in  the  light  of  actual 
facts,  instead  of  floundering  about  in  the  dark  and  reasoning  from 
doubtful  premises. 

This  suggestion  may  possibly  cause  our  Alaskan  friends  to 
groan,  because  is  seems  to  portend  further  delay  in  the  adjustment 
of  their  troubles.  It  is  quite  conceivable  that  the  opposite  would  be 
the  result.  Certainly  very  little  progress*  is  now  being  made  in  the 
settlement  of  the  vexed  problems,  and  it  is  not  apparent  that  a 
speedy  and  satisfactory  solution  is  in  sight.  If  the  proposed  com- 
mission would  work  diligently,  and  not  protract  its  hearings  un- 
necessarily, its  report  might  be  expected  within  a  reasonable  time, 
and  if  that  report  commanded  the  confidence  of  Congress,  its  sug- 
gestions for  the  relief  of  Alaska  might  quickly  be  enacted  into  law. 
And  anyway,  better 'a  little  delay  and  settle  the  question  right,  than 
to  act  blindly  and  make  mistakes. 

Population  Increases  764  in   Ten   Years.  , 

That  there  is  something  wrong  in  Alaska  seems  beyond  doubt. 
When  a  body  of  patriotic  citizens,  emulating  the  illustrious  Revo- 
lutionary tea  destroyers  of  Boston,  organize  a  Cordova  coal  party, 
it  is  obvious  that  they  have  a  grievance.  When  we  hear  it  said  and 
repeated  that  Alaskans  look  with  envious  eyes  upon  the  kind  of 
government  that  is  enjoyed  by  their  Canadian  neighbors,  just  across 
the  line,  and  complain  bitterly  that  their  own  government  is  treat- 
ing them  unjustly  and  unfairly,  and  is  loading  them  with  unreason- 
able burdens  and  restrictions,  it  is  a  burning  shame  that  we  do 
not  at  least  find  out  whether  their  grievances  are  real  or  fancied. 
When  the  population  of  that  wonderful  northern  empire  increased 
only  764  in  the  ten  years  from  1900  to  1910,  it  looks  upon  the  face 
of  it  as  if  its  development  were  being  retarded,  whereas,  it  should 
by  all  means  be  encouraged. 

The  American  Mining  Congress  last  year  adopted  a  most  ex- 
cellent report  of  its  committee  on  Alaskan  mining  laws.  That 
report  contained  a  number  of  observations  and  recommendations 


"128        PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

that  seem  to  be  eminently  sensible  and  fair.  We  believe  that  those 
suggestions  could  be  advantageously  heeded  by  those  whose  busi- 
ness it  is  to  legislate  for  the  territory,  and  by  those  whose  business 
it  is  to  administer  the  laws. 

In  addition  to  what  our  organization  has  already  attempted  to 
do  for  Alaska,  we  stand  ready  to  help  in  any  way  that  lies  within 
our  power.  We  are  fully  in  accord  with  the  policy  of  preventing 
the  resources  of  that  vast  territory  from  falling  into  monopolistic 
control,  but  we  cannot  understand  why  fear  of  that  danger  should 
so  blight  activity  that  progress  and  development  are  at  a  standstill. 
Are  our  statesmen  not  resourceful  enough  to  devise  measures  that 
will  permit  development  and  yet  prevent  monopoly?  I  think  they 
are;  but  they  want  the  information  that  is  requisite  to  intelligent 
action.  What  is  needed  is  a  more  thorough  understanding  of  the 
situation. 

Conservation    a    Live    Issue. 

At  our  session  in  Los  Angeles,  last  year,  the  subject  most  dis- 
cussed was  the  conservation  of  our  natural  resources.  This  should 
not  be  considered  as  a  fad,  but  as  a  live  issue,  and  one  that  jus- 
tifies the  interest  it  has  awakened.  I  suppose  it  would  be  hard  to 
find  a  man  who  would  not  avow  himself  a  conservationist,  although 
he  might  reserve  the  right  to  decide  for  himself  what  conservation 
should  properly  mean.  The  ordinary  conception  of  the  conserva- 
tion policy  that  has  been  recently  developed  in  this  country  makes 
it  mean  the  protection  of  forests,  the  prevention  of  a  water  power 
monopoly,  and  the  leasing  of  coal  and  oil  lands.  These  are  impor- 
tant topics,  especially  to  us,  since  they  all  have  a  direct  effect  upon 
the  mining  industry. 

I  think  I  voice  the  sentiment  of  mining  men  generally  when 
I  say  we  give  our  unqualified  and  unstinted  approval  to  any  well- 
directed  efforts  to  prevent  forest  fires,  to  lessen  the  waste  of  our 
timber  resources,  .and  to  avoid  the  damage  that  may  result  from  in- 
judicious deforestation.  There  can  be  no  sound  objection  to  a  ra- 
tional forestry  policy,  and  the  argument  is  all  in  its  favor.  We  do 
not  believe,  however,  that  it  is  necessary  to  administer  this  policy 
in  such  a  way  as  to  hamper  or  interfere  with  legitimate  mining 
operations.  A  just  forestry  policy,  must  not  impose  burdens  upon 
mining,  but  must  recognize  the  rights  and  needs  of  that  industry, 
and  co-operate  in  its  advancement,  instead  of  placing  obstacles  in 
its  path.  Mining,  likewise,  should  refrain  from  ruthless,  careless 
and  wasteful  destruction  of  timber,  and  should  willingly  comply 
with  the  necessary  regulations  prescribed  by  the  forest  service.  In 


PRESIDENT'S    ANNUAL    ADDRESS  129 

short,  there  should  be  sympathy,  not  antagonism,  between  the  two 
I  also  believe  I  speak  for  the  large  majority  of  the  Western 
mining  men  when  I  say  that,  notwithstanding  many  strong  points 
in  its  favor,  we  are  not  impressed  with  the  wisdom  of  a  plan  to 
lease  coal  and  oil  lands.  We  believe  that  the  rapid  and  systematic 
development  of  this  class  of  lands  can  best  be  brought  about  by 
continuing  the  system  that  now  prevails,  and  under  which  prac- 
tically our  entire  mineral  development  has  taken  place.  We  also 
believe  that  many  of  the  abuses  that  have  been  brought  to  light, 
such  as  dummy  entries  of  coal  lands,  are  directly  traceable  to  a  lax 
enforcement  of  the  law. 

Revision   of  Mineral  Land  Laws. 

There  is  little  doubt  that  if  a  leasing  system  were  adopted,  it 
would  not  stop  at  coal  and  oil  lands,  but  would  expand  to  all  min- 
eral lands.  Most  of  us  recognize  that  our  mineral  land  la\\s  are 
imperfect  in  some  details,  and  the  American  Mining  Congres.1  has 
a  committee  that  is  trying  to  work  out  a  plan  for  a  general  revision 
of  those  laws.  We  know  that  the  present  system  permits  wrongs 
and  abuses  which  call  for  better  regulation,  but  we  believe  these 
can  be  corrected  without  upsetting  the  entire  present  policy  and 
entering  upon  a  wholly  new  path.  The  prevention  of  monopolies 
that  will  have  the  power  of  extorting  unreasonable  prices  from  the 
consumer  is  sound  policy,  which  we  all  approve.  That  it  is  im- 
possible to  prevent  such  monopolies  under  the  present  system  is 
absurd,  and  that  the  leasing  system  will  automatically  prevent  them 
is  doubtful.  That  the  mineral  land  policy  of  the  United  States, 
under  which  the  prospector  is  guaranteed  the  full  benefit  of  his 
discoveries,  has  been  a  horrible  mistake  we  flaMy  deny.  On  the 
contrary,  we  maintain  that  it  has  been  a  beneficent  policy,  and  that 
it  has  been  the  chief  factor  in  winning  the  western  half  of  this  con- 
tinent in  settlement  and  civilization. 

It  is  true  that  great  fortunes  have  been  made  out  of  mining, 
but  they  are  exceptional ;  and  it  is  these  exceptions  that  furnish  the 
incentive  to  the  prospector  to  brave  the  wilds  and  hardships  of  the 
remote  places  of  the  earth,  in  search  of  the  treasure  that  is  to  be 
his  own  when  he  finds  it,  and  that  will  make  him  another  of  the 
exceptions.  Even  under  the  present  liberal  law,  very,  very  few  are 
so  lucky  as  to  have  their  dreams  come  true.  Would  the  prospector 
be  equally  bold  and  venturesome  if  he  knew  that  he  could  get  noth- 
ing but  a  lease  on  his  discoveries  ?  Would  not  the  fear  that  a  ca- 
pricious readjustment  of  royalties  might  rob  him  of  the  greater 
portion  of  his  profits  be  strong  enough  to  deter  him  from  going 


130        PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

ahead  as  he  would  if  he  knew  that  everything  he  might  find  would 
be  absolutely  his  own?  To  a  man  who  has  been  close  to  the  game, 
it  looks  as  if  this  would  be  the  result.  It  seems  to  me  that  the  ques- 
tion of  getting  a  revenue  out  of  the  mineral  lands  is  of  decidedly 
minor  importance. 

The  most  far-reaching  and  valuable  result  of  the  pioneer 
prospector's  work  is  in  opening  up  and  developing  tracts  of  the 
public  domain  that  would  otherwise  remain  untouched.  The  win- 
ning of  these  wild  places  to  settlement  and  civilization  extends  our 
agricultural  area  and  widens  our  markets.  This  is  of  such  vast 
benefit  to  the  whole  country  and  to  all  the  people  that  it  is  idle  to 
say  the  nation  has  wasted  its  resources  because  it  has  given  the  dis- 
coverer title  to  his  discovery.  It  would  be  just  as  logical  to  con- 
demn the  homestead  law,  which  is  universally  conceded  to  be  the 
wisest  policy  this  country  ever  adopted.  There  is  no  difference ; 
the  same  principle  underlies  our  mineral  land  system  arid  our  ag- 
ricultural land  system.  We  believe  it  is  a  wise  principle,  and  we 
believe  it  would  be  a  step  backward  instead  of  forward  to  abro- 
gate the  beneficent  policy  that  has  been  the  chief  factor  in  develop- 
ing the  country,  especially  the  west. 

Furthermore,  the  seeking  out  of  nature's  bounties  and  bring- 
ing them  forth  for  man's  use  is  incomparably  more  important,  and 
more  beneficial  to  all  the  people,  than  the  mere  collection  of  a  trib- 
ute for  the  benefit  of  the  general  government. 
Safeguarding  Water  Powers. 

What  to  do  with  our  water  powers  is  a  question  that  is  not 
easily  answered.  It  is  alleged  that  there  is  in  existence  or  in  pros- 
pect a  monopoly  sthat  aims  to  control  the  water  powers  of  the  coun- 
try. If  this  assertion  has  any  basis  in  fact,  it  deserves  the  most 
careful  attention.  One  of  the  country's  greatest  natural  assets  is 
its  water  powers,  and  these  should  be  looked  after,  so  as  to  get 
the  greatest  good  for  the  greatest  number.  Certainly,  the  most  im- 
portant thing  is  not  to  make  these  water  powers  a  source  of  rev- 
enue to  the  government,  but  to  safeguard  the  public  interest  by 
providing  that  power  can  be  obtained  by  those  who  need  it  at  the 
lowest  possible  rates.  Give  our  people  the  benefit  of  cheap  power, 
and  they  will  have  an  enormous  commercial  advantage  over  other 
nations  less  favored  by  nature.  It  must  be  remembered,  however, 
"that  it  takes  "capital,  and  lots  of  it,  to  develop  these  water  power 
projects,  and  if  we  are  going  to  have  the  power  that  is  now  going 
to  waste  harnessed  up  and  made  to  serve  us,  we  must  encourage 
.capital  to  do  so  by  permitting  it  to  make  a  reasonable  profit.  It 


PRESIDENT'S    ANNUAL    ADDRESS  131 

seems  to  me  that  a  water  power  is  a  public  utility,  just  as  much  as 
a  railroad  is.  and  instead  of  being  treated  strictly  as  private. prop- 
erty, it  should  be  controlled  by  state  laws,  as  other  public  utilities 
are  controlled.  A  water  power  located  in  Oregon  is  of  no  use  to  the 
people  of  Maine  or  Florida,  so  why  should  they  prescribe  the  regu 
lations  ?  It  sounds  like  good  sense  and  good  ethics  to  turn  the  water 
powers  over  to  the  states  in  which  they  are  situated. 

I  have  briefly  adverted  to  these  well-known  features  of  the 
conservation  question.  Whether  the  view  I  have  expressed  be  ac- 
cepted or  not,  I  want  to  add  that  these  matters  are,  after  all,  of 
relatively  small  importance.  There  is  a  broader  conservation  that 
applies  with  particular  force  to  the  mineral  industry.  Conserva- 
tion means  saving,  and  s'aving  means  the  elimination  of  waste.  The 
waste  in  mining  is  something  frightful  and,  unlike  the  waste  in  for- 
estry, it  cannot  be  replaced  or  restored. 

Waste  in  Coal- Mining. 

I  have  heard  it  claimed  that  in  coal  mining  fifty  per  cent  of 
the  coal  is  left  in  the  mines,  and  therefore  wasted.  Manifestly, 
the  reason  is  that  it  does  not  pay  to  mine  cleaner,  and  so  the  waste 
goes  on.  The  value  of  the  coal  production  of  the  United  States  in 
1909  was  $555,000,000.  According  to  this,  we  are  wasting  over 
half  a  billion  dollars'  worth  of  coal  every  year.  I  submit  that  here 
is  a  field  for  conservation  that  makes  our  ordinary  ideas  of  the  sub- 
ject dwindle  into  insignificance.  But  the  loss  does  not  end  here. 
To  convert  coal  into  power,  by  means  of  boilers  and  engines,  is  no- 
toriously wasteful.  Engineers  tell  us  that  engines  only  deliver  from 
five  to  ten  per  cent  of  the  energy  that  is  contained  in  the  coal.  Think 
of  the  benefit  that  would  accrue  to  mankind  from  a  conservation 
that  would  reverse  the  figures,  and  enable  us  to  use  ninety-five  per 
cent  and  lose  five,  instead  of  using  five  per  cent  and  losing 
ninety-five ! 

Similar  examples  can  be  cited  from  other  branches  of  mining — 
gold,  silver,  copper,  lead,  zinc.  In  many  mines  large  quantities  of 
ore  are  lost  through  lack  of  skill  in  extracting  it.  In  others,  im- 
mense tonnages  are  left  standing  because  the  ore  is  too  low  grade 
to  be  profitably  worked  by  the  methods  in  use.  Conservation  here 
means  the  development  of  improved  mining  and  reduction  methods, 
and  the  dissemination  of  knowledge  so  that  efficient  methods  will 
be  used. 

After  the  ore  is  mined,  there  comes  the  metallurgical  loss^ 
which  is  often  greater  than  the  mining  loss.  At  the  great  gold 
mines  of  the  famous  Mother  Lode,  in  California,  the  average  re- 


132         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

covery  probably  is  not  above  eighty  per  cent  of  the  assay  value  of 
the  ore.  It  would  cost  more  to  get  the  other  twenty  per  cent  than 
it  is  worth,  so  it  is  thrown  away.  Some  of  our  greatest  copper 
mines,  which  have  plants  that  are  pointed  out  as  marvels  of  human 
skill  and  ingenuity,  do  not  save  over  seventy  per  cent  of  their  min- 
eral, sometimes  because  no  better  work  can  be  done  by  concentra- 
tion, and  sometimes  because  they  can  make  bigger  dividends  by 
crowding  through  big  tonnages  with  an  indifferent  extraction,  than 
by  treating  a  smaller  tonnage  and  getting  the  maximum  possible 
extraction. 

In  lead  and  zinc  concentrators  the  same  terrific  losses  are  con- 
stantly recurring.  When  a  miner  ships  a  car  of  ore  to  a  smelter,  if 
the  assay  shows  that  the  ore  contains  zinc,  not  only  does  the  smelter 
refuse  to  pay  for  the  zinc,  but  it  charges  the  miner  a  penalty  be- 
cause it  is  present.  These  things  cause  no  comment,  since  it  is 
the  best  that  can  be  done  by  known  processes. 

Metallurgical    Knowledge    Small, 

Viewed  in  its  laigest  aspect,  it  must  be  admitted  that  we  need 
not  be  conceited  about  our  metallurgical  knowledge.  Doubtless,  in 
times  to  come,  the  crudity  of  our  present  day  methods  will  be  mar- 
veled at,  after  our  wastefulness  has  forced  future  generations  to 
evolve  a  real  conservation,  to  stop  these  losses,  and  has  taught 
mankind  that,  although  our  Mother  Earth  is  prodigal  with  her  gifts, 
yet  they  are  not  inexhaustible,  and  are  not  to  be  thrown  away,  but 
are  blessings  to  be  appreciated.  Is  this  all  idle  talk,  visionary,  im- 
practical dreaming?  In  this  day  of  wireless  telegraphy  and  flying 
machines,  who  will  dare  stand  up  and  say  anything  is  impossible? 
I  have  merely  pointed  out  that,  rapid  and  wonderful  as  our  prog- 
ress has  been,  we  have  hardly  made  a  start.  In  the  bright  lexicon  of 
mining  science  there  should  be  no  such  word  as  complacency,  be- 
cause the  possibilities — and  not  only  the  possibilities  but  the  needs — 
of  the  future  generations  have  no  limits.  Here  is  a  policy  of  con- 
servation that  spells  the  advancement  of  the  human  race,  and  about 
that  there  can  be  no  disagreement. 

Progress  is  always  gradual,  and  generally  slow.  It  is  not  to 
be  expected  that  we  will  travel  very  far  toward  the  millennium  in 
our  generation,  but  it  is  for  us  to  do  what  we  can.  Every  man 
engaged  in  any  branch  of  the  mining  industry  should  feel  that  it  is 
his  duty  to  contribute  something  to  the  sum  of  human  knowledge 
and  human  happiness,  and  he  will  be  eager  to  do  so  when  he  comes 
to  realize  that  there  is  no  joy  like  the  joy  of  creating  something 
new  and  valuable. 


PRESIDENT'S    ANNUAL    ADDRESS  133 

A  great  deal  can  be  done  and  is  being  done  by  institutions  of 
learning  and  scientific  societies.  I  should  like  to  pay  a  more  ex- 
tended appreciation  to  our  colleges  and  schools  of  mines,  because 
they  richly  deserve  all  the  praise  that  can  be  showered  upon  them. 
But  I  want  to  refer  especially  to  a  subject  of  prime  importance, 
the  National  Bureau  of  Mines,  which  we  claim  as  the  child  of  the 
American  Mining  Congress,  and  from  which  we  hope  for  great, 
things. 

The  Bureau  of  Mines. 

The  American  Mining  Congress  for  years  demanded  the  crea- 
tion of  a  Department  of  Mines  and  Mining  in  our  national  govern- 
ment, with  representation  in  the  President's  cabinet.  Due  directly 
to  the  efforts  of  our  organization,  Congress  finally  created  a  Bureau 
of  Mines.  That  our  efforts  were  successful  was  due  to  the  support 
of  the  distinguished  guest  who  is  to  honor  us  by  his  presence  during 
our  present  session,  and  whose  wisdom,  high-mindedness  and  sin- 
cerity of  purpose  we  all  acknowledge  and  applaud,  President  Wil- 
liam Howard  Taft. 

Congress  created  the  Bureau  of  Mines,  but  the  usefulness  of 
the  bureau  has  so  far  been  circumscribed  within  very  narrow  limits. 
It  is  true  that  it  has  been  permitted  to  do  some  extremely  valuable 
work  to  lessen  the  number  of  accidents  in  coal  mines,  but  aside 
from  that  its  chief  work  has  been  to  test  fuel  for  the  government 
so  that  when  Uncle  Sam  wants  a  load  of  coal  for  the  capitol  at 
Washington  or  for  one  of  his  battleships,  he  will  get  his  money's 
worth.  No  doubt  this  is  a  necessary  and  important  function,  but 
we  are  not  satisfied  with  this  amount  of  aid  for  the  mining  industry. 
One  of  the  important  tasks  before  us  is  to  create  a  demand  that  the 
Bureau  of  Mines  be  given  a  chance  to  do  some  of  the  things  that 
we  expected  of  it.  Give  it  a  chance,  and  we  have  no  fear  that  it 
will  not  quickly  justify  itself.  If  we  can  convince  our  congress- 
men and  senators  that  the  Bureau  of  Mines  ought  to  have  the 
authority  and  the  appropriation  it  asks  for,  our  able  and  good 
friend,  Dr.  Holmes,  and  his  assistants,  will  promptly  demonstrate 
that  the  money  could  not  have  been  better  spent. 

We  believe  that  the  Bureau  of  Mines  ought  to  be  to  the 
miner  what  the  Department  of  Agriculture  is  to  the  farmer.  When 
the  Department  of  Agriculture  was  created,  it  was  the  object  of 
much  criticism  and  yet  it  is  now  one  of  the  most  important  factors 
in  our  national  life,  and  nobody  wants  it  abolished.  I  am  an  ardent 
admirer  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture  and  of  the  work. that  it 
is  doing.  So  far  as  tangible  results  are  concerned,  I  believe  it  is 


134         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

the  most  useful  branch  of  our  government.  It  tells  the  farmer  how 
to  maintain  the  fertility  of  his  soil  by  rotating  crops ;  when  and 
how  to  plow  his  land;  what  sort  of  crops  to  raise,  and  how  to  get 
the  highest  yields;  how  to  irrigate  his  land  if  it  does  not  rain 
enough,  and  how  to  drain  it  if  it  rains  too  much.  If  the  farmer 
wants  to  raise  livestock,  it  tells  him  all  about  every  kind,  from  bees 
to  beef.  If  he  wants  to  know  what  crops  would  be  profitable-  in 
his  country,  it  will  cite  him  the  relative  advantages  of  peanuts  and 
prunes,  or  sweet  potatoes  and  alfalfa.  If  the  San  Jose 'scale,  the 
gipsy  moth,  or  the  cotton  boll  or  alfalfa  weevil  are  getting  in 
their  deadly  work,  it  will  send  out  experts  to  study  the  pest;  and 
figure  out  how  to  get  rid  of  it.  If  he  is  afraid  the  frost  is  going 
to  damage  his  fruit  trees,  he  keeps  his  eye  on  the  weather  signals. 
If  his  hogs  get  the  cholera,  it  sends  him  a  batch  of  serum,  that  will 
render  the  live  ones  immune,,  and  it  will  incidentally  offer  a  bit 
of  advice  as  to  what  to  do  with  the  dead  ones.  It  tells  the  house- 
wife how  to  cook  the  meat,  how  to  bake  bread,  how  to  take  care 
of  the  milk,  how  to  make  the  hens  lay,  what  to  plant  in  the  garden, 
how  to  get  rid  of  mice,  and  how  and  why  to  swat  the  fly.  These 
and  ten  thousand  other  things  have  helped  to  increase  the  value 
of  farm  products,  and  to  make  life  more  worth  living. 

This  work  is  of  such  colossal  importance  that  I  should  like  to 
explain  the  activities  of  the  department  more  fully  in  another  way, 
so  as  to  make  it  better  understood,  but  such  a  recital  would  be 
tedious.  I  will  say,  however,  that  the  Department  of  Agriculture 
is  divided  into  nine  bureaus,  besides  several  so-called  offices  and 
divisions.  These  are  enumerated  as  follows :  Weather  Bureau, 
Bureau  of  Animal  Industry,  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry,  Forest 
Service,  Bureau  of  Chemistry,  Bureau  of  Soils,  Bureau  of  Ento- 
mology, Bureau  of  Biological  Survey,  Division  of  Accounts  and 
Disbursements,  Division  of  Publications,  Bureau  of  Statistics, 
Office  of  Experiment  Stations,  and  Office  of  Public  Roads. 

The  Government  appropriated  about  $17,000,000  for  the  Agri- 
cultural Department  in  1910.  Secretary  Wilson's  report  for  that 
year  covers  156  printed  pages,  and  concludes  with  the  following 
v/ords : 

'The  foregoing  is  a  brief  account  of  what  the  Department  has 
been  doing  during  the  past  year  to  help  farmers  through  research 
and  demonstration.  We  have  been  diligent  to  contribute  toward 
heavier  crops,  owing  to  high  prices  for  the  necessities  of  life,  and 
we  feel  justified  in  thinking  that  our  efforts  and  those  of  the  scien- 
tists of  the  states  are  telling  in  the  grand  totals  set  forth.  The  day's 


PRESIDENT'S    ANNUAL    ADDRESS  135 

work  on  the  farm  is  accom;  lishing  more,  and  the  acre  is  yielding 
more.  During  the  past  year  such  attention  has  been  given  to  demon- 
stration in  the  field  of  what  is  known  to  advanced  students,  that 
men  of  limited  means  and  circumscribed  condition^  might  learn  by 
object  lesson  better  methods  and  thereby  increase  their  incomes  and 
also  contribute  to  the  magnitude  of  our  crops. 
"Science  that  is  not  applied  is  dead." 

A  Plea  for  the  Mining  Industry. 

If  these  great  things  are  done  for  agriculture,  why  riot  do 
something  for  agriculture's  sister — mining?  Be  it  remembered 
that  man's  every  need  is  supplied  by  our  Mother  Earth.  Out  of  the 
earth's  crust  comes  everything  we  eat,  drink,  wear  or  use,  all  our 
habitations,  conveyances,  tools,  and  in  fact  everything  we  have,  be 
it  necessity  or  luxury.  Agriculture  and  mining  are  the  twin 
sciences  that  divide  between  themselves  the  work  of  extracting 
these  things  from  the  earth.  Agriculture  has  the  vegetable  king- 
dom, and  mining  the  mineral  kingdom.  Is  there  any  reason  why 
agriculture  should  be  made  the  favorite  child  of  our  government, 
while  mining  is  treated  as  a  step-child  ? 

The  two  sciences  are  of  equal  importance,  and  neither  could 
exist  without  the  other.  We  are  not  in  the  least  jealous  of  the  treat- 
ment that  has  been  accorded  to  agriculture.  She  merits  it  all  and 
more.  We  only  plead  that  mining  be  likewise  recognized,  and 
given  her  just  dues.  To  those  who  argue  that  agriculture  is  the 
more  important,  we  say,  "Pause  and  reflect  whether  any  sort  of  a 
civilization  could  be  possible  without  the  products  of  the  mines." 
It  is  undoubtedly  true  that  no  mining  or  any  other  sort  of  work 
could  be  done  without  agriculture  to  feed  the  workers ;  but  at 
the  same  time  agriculture  alone  is  helpless  to  advance  the  human 
family  in  its  onward  march  toward  higher  and  better  things. 

What  Alining  Docs  for  Civilization. 

Let  me  cite  a  few  simple,  homely  examples.  Does  agriculture 
want  to  raise  a  crop?  Let  mining  first  furnish  the  implements 
wherewith  to  till  the  soil  and  harvest  the  grain.  What  sort  of  a 
civilization  would  it  be  that  had  to  plow  the  soil  with  a  crooked 
stick,  and  harvest  and  thresh  with  the  naked  hands? 

When  you  sit  down  to  eat  a  meal,  agriculture  furnishes  the 
food,  but  mining  supplies  the  stove,  and  probably  the  fuel,  to  pre- 
pare it  for  the  table,  as  well  as  the  pots,  kettles,  dishes  and  utensils. 
How  far  would  man  have  progressed  if  he  had  to  eat  his  food 


136        PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

raw,  or  had  to  cook  it  on  the  end  of  a  stick  over  a  wood  camp-fire, 
and  eat  it  with  his  fingers? 

Do  you  want  to  build  a  dwelling?  Agriculture  will  furnish  the 
wood,  but  mining  must  provide  the  stones,  bricks,  mortar,  cement, 
plaster,  the  paint,  the  windows,  the  door-knobs  and  hinges,  the 
plumbing,  the  heating  apparatus,  the  gas  or  electric  light  fixtures. 
A  sorry  sort  of  a  house  it  would  be  without  the  products  of  the 
mines,  and  one  habitable  only  by  primitive  savages. 

Do  you  wish  to  travel  from  place  to  place  ?  Show  me  the 
vehicle  that  could  be  constructed  from  the  products  of  agriculture 
alone,  and  I  will  show  you  that  it  represents  a  civilization  not  far 
removed  from  barbarism.  Your  carriages,  your  automobiles,  your 
railroads,  your  flying  machines  would  be  undreamt  of  without  the 
materials  produced  by  mining. 

Do  you  wish  to  telegraph  or  telephone  ?  The  message  goes 
over  a  wire  provided  by  mining.  Do  you  want  to  know  the  time  of 
day?  A  wooden  sun  dial  is  about  the  only  conceivable  time-piece 
that  agriculture  could  provide. 

But  I  need  not  multiply  examples  to  convince  any  reasonable 
person  that  mining  is  by  no  means  second  to  agriculture,  but  is  its 
equal  in  every  respect.  As  I  have  said,  it  would  be  a  physical  im- 
possibility to  have  any  sort  of  a  civilization  with  agriculture  alone. 
Man  is  the  only  one  of  God's  creatures  that  makes  use  of  the  min- 
eral products,  and  perhaps  that  is  the  index  of  his  superiority  over 
all  other  forms  of  life.  Mining  men  themselves  do  not  always 
fully  appreciate  the  dignity  of  their  calling.  There  is  no  higher  or 
nobler  one  in  the  world. 

Ample  Justification  for  Government  Aid. 

For  these  reasons  we  feel  ourselves  justified  in  asking  for 
more  ample  aid  from  the  government.  Mining  operators  are  not 
all  millionaires.  Many  of  them,  in  fact  most  of  them,  are  men  of 
limited  means,  who  are  struggling  along,  trying  to  make  a  living 
out  of  their  claims.  To  such  a  man,  research  and  demonstration 
would  be  of  great  benefit.  Experiment  stations  would  give  him  the 
information  he  needs,  in  order  to  work  more  intelligently  and  more 
efficiently,  just  as  such  stations  have  helped  the  farmer. 

Great  corporations  can  employ  the  best  and  most  expert  talent 
to  work  out  their  own  problems,  but  such  discoveries  as  they  make 
are  for  their  own  benefit,  and  not  for  the  benefit  of  the  general 
public.  An  invention,  such  as  an  improved  metallurgical  process, 
seldom  comes  as  an  inspiration,  but  is  evolved  out  of  a  long, 
tedious,  series  of  tests  that  require  special  knowledge  and  training, 


PRESIDENT'S    ANNUAL    ADDRESS  137 

as  well  as  time,  apparatus,  and  material.  Manifestly  the  poor 
operator  can  do  no  work  of  this  kind,  and  it  must  be  done  for  him, 
just  as  similar  work  is  done  for  the  farmer.  I  trust  I  have  ijiacle 
clear  both  the  analogy  and  the  necessity. 

In  conclusion,  let  me  say  again  that  the  American  Mining  Con- 
gress aims  to  stand  for  all  branches  of  mining.  It  was  founded 
by  the  -metal  miners  of  the  West,  but  we  Westerners  have  learned 
that  the  value  of  our  metals  is  insignificant  compared  with  the  coal, 
iron  and  petroleum  of  the  East.  We  want  East  and  West  to  join 
hands,  and  make  our  organization  truly  representative  of  the  min- 
ing industry  of  the  whole  country" 


The  Public  Lands  Question. 

BY  HON.   WILLIAM   SPRY, 
GOVERNOR  OF  UTAH. 


In  discussing  the  question  of  conservation,  permit  me  to  assure 
you  at  the  outset  that  I  do  not  come  before  you  as  an  advocate  of 
the  so-called  State's  rights  phase  of  this  important  subject.  The 
public  domain  of  this  country  is  the  exclusive  property  of  the  United 
States,  subject  only  to  the  control  and  disposition  of  Congress.  The 
National  Government  has  acquired  title  to  its  public  lands  by  suc- 
cession to  Great  Britain,  by  cessions  from  the  original  thirteen 
states  and  by  purchase  from,  foreign  governments. 

Differing  as  to  conditions  of  cession  to  that  portion  of  the 
public  domain  which  lies  north  of  Florida  and  east  of  the  Mississippi 
the  original  states  were  agreed  in  this  one  particular,  namely,  that 
the  territory  thus  ceded  should  be  a  common  fund  for  the  joint 
benefit  of  the  then  members  and  all  future  members  of  the  Union. 
Differentiated  as  were  opinions  on  the  terms  of  admission  of  new 
states,  justice  ultimately  prevailed  and  territories  are  admitted  to 
the  Union  on  equality  of  terms  with  the  original  states. 

Under  a  reasonable  construction  of  our  constitution,  the  right 
of  Congress  to  administer  and  dispose  of  the  public  lands  of  the 
United  States  as  it  sees  fit  and  proper  cannot  be  questioned. 

The  question  of  the  policy  of  that  administration,  however,  is 
one  upon  which  opinions  are  widely  different.  It  is  a  subject  of 
surpassing  interest ;  if,  indeed,  it  is  not  a  subject  of  deep  anxiety. 
It  is  to  the  question  of  "policy"  of  administration  and  not  of  right 
to  administer  that  I  shall  address  my  remarks. 
First  Conservation  Congress. 

Four  years  ago,  at  the  suggestion  of  the  Inland  Waterways 
Commission,  President  Theodore  Roosevelt  invited  the  various  gov- 
ernors, the  senators  and  representatives  of  the  Sixtieth  Congress, 
and  men  of  prominence  in  public  affairs  to  confer  together  on  the 
conservation  of  the  natural  resources,  and  in  May  of  1908  there 
was  held  at  the  White  House  the  first  conservation  congress. 
Called  ostensibly  for  the  purpose  of  considering  the  use  and  con- 
servation of  the  mineral  resources,  of  the  resources  of  the  land  and 
the  resources  of  the  water  in  every  part  of  our  territory,  as  matters 
of  vital  concern  to  the  nation  as  a  whole  and  to  all  the  people,  it  was 


THE    PUBLIC    LANDS    QUESTION  139 

reasonably  assumed  that  the  discussions  would  be  along  the  line 
of  waste  prevention  and  that  from  them  there  would  be  evolved  a 
policy  of  foresight  in  the  administration  of  the  public  domain — a 
policy  which,  in  its  practical  application,  would  have  in  view  the 
needs  of  the  future,  while  adequately  meeting1  the  demands  of  the 
present. 

This  conference,  for  some  season  or  other,  resolved  itself  into 
a  more  or  less  spectacular,  \vordy  exploitation  of  facts  regarding 
the  exhaustion  of  natural  resources. 

From  the  modestly  expressed  fear  that  the  present  day  wanton 
waste  of  the  natural  resources  would  work  a  hardship  on  future 
generations,  the  radical  conservationists,  supported  by  extravagant 
statements  as  to  the  depletion  of  the  timber,  the  coal,  and  the  min- 
eral supply  of  the  nation,  grew  alarmed  for  the  material  prosperity 
of  the  succeeding  generation,  and,  taking  advantage  of  a  vague 
public  understanding  of  the  meaning  of  conservation,  soon  had  the 
country  on  the  very  verge  of  a  public  resource  famine,  so  por- 
tentous as  to  demand  drastic  changes  in  the  administration  of  the 
public  domain.  Statistics  were  presented,  which  at  the  time  were 
unchallenged,  by  which  it  was  proven  that  within  a  comparatively 
few  years  the  people  would  actually  suffer  from  the  cold  for  want 
of  coal,  that  the  vast  mountain  ranges  would  be  stripped  of  their 
ores  and  precious  metals,  that  the  iron  age  would  be  a  thing  of  the 
past  and  that  the  present  medium  of  exchange  would  have  to  be 
abolished — in  brief,  that  the  grea,t  American  republic  would  shortly 
face  a  veritable  bankruptcy  of  public  resource. 

Shrinkage  in  Public  Resources. 

I  believe  I  am  safe  in  saying  that  the  pages  of  history  fail  to 
disclose  such  a  remarkable  shrinkage  in  public  resource,  in  so  short 
a  time,  as  the  shrinkage  which  followed  in  the  immediate  wake  oi 
this  first  and  subsequent  conservation  congresses.  The  boast  of 
the  American  people  that  they  are  possessed  of  a  nation  of  un- 
equaled,  not  to  say  unsurpassed,  natural  resource,  has  been  tem- 
porarily silenced  by  the  conservationist  and  the  bright  future  has 
been  obscured  by  imaginary  dark  clouds  of  doubt  and  uncertainty. 

The  state  executives  departed  from  the  first  conservation  con- 
gress filled  with  conservation  ideas,  and  with  the  understanding  that 
the  several  states  were  to  have  an  influence  if  not  a  voice  in  shaping 
the  future  policy  of  public  land  administration,  promptly  appointed 
state  conservation  commissions,  to  act  in  conjunction  with  the 
national  government. 


140         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

Time  has  demonstrated  that  there  was  no  clear  understanding 
on  the  part  of  the  states  as  to  their  participation  in  the  conservation 
movement.  I  believe  I  am  within  the  fact  when  I  say  that  time 
also  has  demonstrated  that  the  states  have  had  much  less  to  do 
with  conservation  in  recent  years  than  they  had  prior  to  the  first 
Congress.  The  only  tangible  result  that  has  come  from  the  earnest 
efforts  of-  public  spirited  men  who  enlisted  their  services  with  the 
Utah  State  Conservation  Commission  is  the  accumulation  of  facts 
regarding  the  public  resources  of  Utah — mineral,  coal,  water  and 
soil — which  establish  the  previous  estimates  of  its  wealth  of  natural 
resources  as  ridiculously  low,  and  demonstrate  that  the  variety  and 
extent  of  this  resource  is  impossible  of  even  approximation ;  and  so 
it  transpires  that  while  the  national  conservation  advocates  continue 
to  hold  conferences  given  over  largely  to  the  discussion  of  resource 
shortage,  the  State  Conservation  Commission  of  Utah  has  fallen 
naturally  and  rightly  into  the  discharge  of  duties  'that  would 
ordinarily  devolve  upon  a  bureau  of  research  and  publicity  and  it  is 
today  supplying  information  on  the  bountiful  natural  resources  of 
the  state. 

Conservationists  One-Sided. 

The  great  trouble  with  the  discussions  of  the  National  con- 
servationists has  been  that  they  have  been  altogether  too  one-sided ; 
too  much  has  been  said  of  the  exhaustion  of  coal  and  too  little  has 
been  advanced  concerning  the  fact  that  we  are  leaving  the  age  of 
steam  behind  us  and  entering  on  the  age  of  electricity ;  too  much 
has  been  said  of  the  depletion  of  the  timber  supply,  while  far  too 
little  has  been  said  regarding  the  cement  era ;  too  many  contracted 
papers  have  been  presented  on  the  exhaustion  of  the  mineral  re- 
sources of  the  nation,  and  the  mineral  deposits  have  been  grossly 
underestimated. 

I  have  no  desire  to  combat  statistical  arguments  regarding 
mineral  exhaustion  with  statistical  arguments  regarding  mineral 
wealth ;  but  I  do  desire  to  say  in  passing  that  Utah  will  place 
mountains  of  the  largest  and  choicest  iron  deposits  in  the  world 
against  rows  of  figures  on  the  exhaustion  of  the  iron  supply  of  the 
nation ;  it  will  place  thousands  of  square  miles  of  coal  measures 
against  the  estimated  end  of  the  coal  supply  measured  by  tons ;  it 
will  meet  figures  on  the  passing  of  the  copper  output  with  moun- 
tains of  copper  ore,  and  it  is  perhaps  pertinent  to  here  observe  that 
when  the  first  statistics  on  mineral  exhaustion  were  being  presented 
at  Washington  in  1908,  a  Utah  man  was  perfecting  his  plans  for  a 
new  method  of  handling  low-grade  copper  ore  that  then  lay  in  the 


THE    PUBLIC    LANDS    QUESTION  141 

• 
"exhausted"  or  non-producing  zone    and    consequently    found    no 

place  in  the  elaborate  statistical  data,  and  that  since  his  method  was 
put  in  operation  the  "exhausted  area"  has  developed  into  one  of  the 
greatest  copper  producing"  camps  in  the  world. 
Exhaustion  of  Soil. 

Too  much  has  been  said  regarding  the  exhaustion  of  the  soil. 
I  submit  that  soil  exhaustion  is  a  problem  for  conservationists  to 
handle ;  but  it  resolves  itself  absolutely  to  an  elastic  policy  that  will 
meet  local  conditions.  It  is  perhaps  true  that  the  soils  of  the  East 
have  been  worked  too  steadily  without  sufficient  fertilization;  it  is 
absolutely  true  that  in  the  West  nature  replenishes  and  fertilizes 
her  soils  through  the  nutrition  that  comes  from  the  everlasting  hills. 
Irrigation  produces  crops  and  at  the  same  time  conserves  the 
strength  and  adds  to  the  life-giving  properties  of  the  soil.- 

Mind  you,  I  do  not  desire  to  be  understood  as  being  opposed 
to  conservation  nor  to  wholly  condemn  the  system  of  its  operation. 
I  believe  in  the  forest  reserve.  In  our  own  state,  for  instance,  I 
have  seen  great  watersheds  rejuvenated  through  government 
supervision  and  the  water  supjply  regulated  and  purified ;  but  I  do 
not  believe  in  the  withdrawal  of  agricultural  lands  to  be  placed  in 
the  forest  reserves,  upon  which  lands  nature  herself  never  pro- 
duced trees  and  upon  which  lands  human  agencies  will  never  pro- 
duce forests.  It  is  in  these  withdrawals  and  the  withdrawals  of 
agricultural  lands,  because  of  possible  oil  deposits,  that  the  hard- 
ship lies  and  it  is  in. urging  these  withdrawals  that  the  radical  con- 
servationist does  his  greatest  mischief. 

I  do  not  believe  that  the  conservation  of  the  coal  supply  means 
the  cessation  or  even  the  curtailment  of  coal  production.  Conser- 
vation of  the  coal  supply  resolves  itself  into  a  question  of  national 
or  state  regulation  in  the  matter  of  its  production.  In  other  words, 
I  believe  it  is  within  the  range  of  possibility  to  so  regulate  the 
operation  of  coal  mines  as  to  recover  and  save  for  useful  purposes 
a  vast  percentage  over  what  is  now  actually  mined.  It  is  within 
the  province  of  the  conservationist  to  urge,  as  it  is  within  the  range 
of  good  business  judgment  to  demand,  that  the  exhaustion  of  one 
particular  coal  claim  or  deposit  shall  not  mean 'the  caving  in  and 
total  destruction  of  its  workings,  but  the  saving  thereof  for  the  use 
and  benefit  of  the  adjoining  property. 

Cannot  Approximate  Mineral  Resources. 

I  have  absolutely  no  sympathy  for  the  bugaboo  of  mineral  ex- 
haustion. No  man  or  set  of  men  will  assume  to  estimate  the  min- 


142         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

eral  deposits  of  this  nation.  Not  until  the  surface  of  the  entire 
United  States  has  been  honeycombed  by  the  prospector  and  miner 
will  any  thoughtful  man  attempt  to  approximate  the  mineral  re- 
sources of  the  nation,  and  then  no  man  will  have  the  temerity  to  fix 
a  limit  to  which  the  sciences  may  go  in  discovering  new  processes 
of  extracting  and  making  useful  the  mineral  deposits  of  Mother 
Earth. 

Now  as  to  the  policy  of  the  administration  of  the  public  do- 
main. First  of  all,  bear  in  mind  the  fact  that  the  states  of  the  Union 
are  admitted  on  terms  of  equality.  With  this  fact  firmly  established, 
consider  that  the  nation  has  operated  for  many  years  under  a  liberal 
policy  in  the  disposal  of  its  public  lands;  that  the  broad  terms  of 
this  policy  have  been  fundamentally  responsible  for  the  growth, 
development  and  wealth  of  the  great  centers  of  the  East;  that  an 
empire 'within  an  empire,  the  great  empire  of  the  West,  is  approach- 
ing an  era  of  development  that  from  all  indications  will  eclipse  the 
wonderful  growth  of  the  East ;  that  the  sale  of  agricultural  lands 
was  primarily  responsible  for  the  growth  in  population  in  the  East ; 
that  the  development  of  the  mineral  resources  added  to  the  wealth 
of  the  East,  and  that  the  use  of  all  the  bounteous,  gifts  of  nature 
made  the  East  what  it  is  today. 

Because  of  the  extravagant  representations  which  have  here- 
tofore been  mentioned,  the  former  liberal  policy  of  the  National 
Government  has  been  materially  curtailed ;  vast  areas  have  been 
withdrawn  from  entry,  particularly  in  the  West;  new  and  radical 
departures  in  the  regulations  governing  the  handling  of  mineral 
and  oil  lands  have  been  adopted,  while  it  is  now  urged  that  water 
power  sites  should  be  withdrawn  from  entry.  The  leasing  of  min- 
eral and  oil  lands  and  water  power  sites  by  the  government  is  being- 
considered  as  a  method  of  carrying  out  the  conservation  idea. 
Present  Policy  Should  Not  Be  Pursued. 

Many  reasons  can  be  advanced  why  such  a  policy  of  admin- 
istration of  the  public  domain  should  not  be  pursued.  Permit  .me 
to  mention  briefly  the  most  important : 

Under  this  policy  the  states  wherein  the  public  domain  as  yet 
lies  practically  in,  its  virgin  state  are  deprived  of  that  benefit  that 
accrues  to  the  older  states  through  the  disposal  of  its  public  domain 
and  use  of  the  natural  resources.  It  is  obvious  that  the  develop- 
ment which  came  to  the  older  states,  through  the  disposal  of  the 
public  domain  to  individuals,  will  be  deprived  the  younger  and  less 
developed  states  and  that,  while  the  greatest  direct  benefits  of  the 
former  liberal  policy  accrued  to  the  individual  states  wherein  such 


THE    PUBLIC    LANDS    QUESTION  143 

sales  were  made,  the  direct  benefits  not  only  from  the  sale  but  from 
the  development  of  the  public  lands  in  the  Western  states,  under 
the  present  policy,  will  go  to  all  the  states  of  the  Union. 

Suppose  the  government  leases  its  mineral  and  oil  lands  and 
its  water  power  sites  and  remains  forever  vested  of  title,  who  can 
estimate  the  loss  in  revenues  from  taxation  that  may  be  suffered 
by  the  states  wherein  these  valuable  resources  are  located,  which 
revenues  have  for  years  been  accruing  to  the  older  states  because 
their  resources  have  been  vested  in  private  or  corporate  ownership 
and  become  subject  to  taxation  by  the  states — a  thing  which  it  ap- 
pears will  be  utterly  impossible  under  the  leasing  system  so  long 
as  the  government  holds  title,  since  government  lands  cannot,  under 
the  constitution,  be  subjected  to  taxation. 

This  phase  of  the  leasing  system  alone  condemns  it  as  a  policy 
in  absolute  violation  of  the  spirit  of  equality  of  rights  in  the  public 
domain.  A  material  factor  in  the  growth  and  development  of  a 
state  is  the  distribution  of  the  burden  of  taxation.  Take  from  the 
state  its  right  to  tax  mining  claims,  the  mineral  and  oil  output,  and 
the  power  sites  within  its  boundaries,  and  you  rob  that  common- 
wealth of  a  revenue  that  has  been  a  source  of  ever-increasing  in- 
come to  the  older  states ;  and  increase  instead  of  diminish  the  bur- 
den the  freeholder  is  already  called  upon  to  bear. 
Discussion  of  Leasing  System. 

Perhaps  a  legal |:xpert  can  enlighten  you  as  to  the  power  of 
states  to  tax  even  tii  net  proceeds  of  mines  under  the  proposed 
leasing  system  from  the  government. 

Carry  the  mineral  leasing  policy  a  step  farther:  If  it  is  proper 
that  the  pioneer  prospector,  the  man  above  all  who  stakes  his  all 
on  a  chance  that  he  and  his  fellow  men  may  prosper,  the  man  who 
invests  his  money,  his  talents,  his  energy,  in  delving  after  the  min- 
eral deposits  of  the  public  domain,  and  who,  after  the  expenditure 
of  his  means,  finds  a  "pay  streak,"  installs  machinery,  opens  up  a 
vein  of  'ore,  which  but  for  his  persistency  would  have  lain  hidden 
for  centuries,  must  turn  over  to  the  federal  government  what  he 
has  found,  and  if  he  will  continue  to  develop  it  he  must  do  so  as  a 
lessee,  why  should  not  the  same  policy  be  proper  in  the  matter  of 
agricultural  lands? 

In  short,  let  the  homeseeker  select  a  piece  of  raw  land  which 
he  regards  as  a  possible  producer  of  agricultural  products,  let  him 
clear  it  of  sagebrush,  let  him  plow  and  seed  the  same,  and,  if  in  an 
arid  section  of  the  United  States,  let  him  at  his  own  expense  acquire 
and  deliver  to  that  land  the  water  which  is  necessary  to  produce 


144         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN     MINING    CONGRESS 

the  crop,  and  then  if  the  experiment  is  a  success  and  he  secures  a 
rich  harvest,  let  him  become  a  lessee  of  the  federal  government  and 
work  his  land,  not  as  a  freeholder  but  as  a  tenant  of  the  national 
government,  which  becomes  his  landlord.  And  I  submit  that  if 
we  are  to  wait  on  the  national  government  for  the  putting  of  the 
mineral  and  oil  and  agricultural  lands  in  condition  for  tenancy,  fu- 
..ture  generations  will  be  amply  provided  with  undeveloped  resources, 
both  land  and  mineral. 

Landlordism    Autocratic. 

Aside  from  this,  landlordism  has  always  been  autocratic,  while 
tenantry  has  developed  peoples  who  lack  in  the  two  most  glorious 
qualities  of  American  citizenship — loyalty  and  patriotism.  Out  in 
the  West  we  have  been  building  up  our  country  by  urging  people 
to  own  their  own  homes,  to  own  their  own  places  of  business,  and 
to  own  the  business  in  which  they  are  engaged,  and  it  is  the  only 
policy  that  will  make  toward  intelligent,  broad-minded,  progressive 
citizenship. 

Tenantry  is  repugnant  to  the  ideals  of  American  citizenship. 

While  I  have  pronounced  views  on  the  public  land  policy,  I  do 
not  want  you  to  regard  me  as  a  radicalist.  While  I  do  not  believe 
that  under  the  present  law  the  states  have  the  legal  right  to  a  voice 
in  the  administration  of  the  public  domain,  other  than  their  repre- 
sentation in  Congress,  they  have  a  moral  right  to  insist  on  a  policy 
that  shall  be  in  harmony  with  the  previous  policy  and  calculated  to 
develop  and  upbuild  the  country. 

Whether  Congress  should  or  should  not  transfer  the  control 
of  the  unappropriated  public  lands  to  the  respective  states  wherein 
they  lie,  is  a  question  upon  which  there  is  much  agitation.  Laying 
that  problem  to  one  side,  I  do  believe  that  the  public  land  within  the 
boundaries  of  any  state ;  that  the  minerals  thereof,  the  oil  deposits, 
the  timber  and  the  natural  resources  individually  and  collectively 
should  be  administered  on  terms  of  equality  in  every  state  of  the 
Union.  And  there  is  but  one  term  of  equality;  that  is  the  dispo- 
sition of  those  lands  to  the  bona  fide  homeseeker,  to  the  prospector 
and  to  the  miner. 

Maturing   States   Entitled   to   Resources. 

I  believe  that  the  Federal  Government  legally  exercises  super- 
vision over  the  public  domain  in  the  entire  United  States,  but  the 
moment  the  policy  of  that  administration  makes  for  the  benefit 
the  whole  of  the  United  States  at  the  expense  of  the  growth,  de- 
velopment and  prosperity  of  a  state  that  is  entitled  to  the  same. 


THE    PUBLIC    LANDS    QUESTION  145 

benefits  from  the  public  domain  as  have  been  enjoyed  by  others, 
the  policy  is  in  violation  of  the  spirit  of  fairness  and  equality.  The 
fact  that  the  resources  of  some  of  the  older  states  have  been  par- 
tially or  even  wholly  exhausted  should  not  for  a  moment  argue  that 
the  younger  or  the  more  conservative  states  should  be  deprived  of 
their  resources. 

In  other  words,  the  natural  resources  within  the  given  boun- 
daries of  a  state,  whether  vested  in  private,  state  or  federal  owner- 
ship, constitute  the  capital  upon  which  that  particular  state  must 
conduct  its  business,  and  that  capital  should  not  be  impaired  by 
stagnation.  In  my  opinion,  the  business  of  the  government  and 
the  business  of  the  state  is  being  properly  conducted  when  the  public 
lands  go  to  bona  fide  homeseekers,  when  its  minerals  are  being 
converted  into  the  wealth  of  the  state  and  the  nation,  and  wheri  its 
waters  are  being  used  for  irrigation,  transportation  and  power,  and 
when  its  timber  is  cut  to  build  homes,  schoolhouses  and  public  build- 
ings. And  the  capital  of  the  nation  and  the  state  and  the  individual 
is  being  impaired  when  the  use  of  these  great  natural  resources 
whose  development  creates  life  and  prosperity  is  so  restricted  as  to 
prevent  their  free  and  unlimited  development. 


Past,  Present  and  Future  of  Copper. 

BY  HORACE  J.  STEVENS, 
HOUGHTON,   MICHIGAN. 


The  great  copper  industry  of  the  present  day  is  a  thing  of 
small  beginnings.  One  century  ago,  in  the  year  1811,  the  world's 
production  of  copper  was  a  trifle  under  10,000  long'  tons,  an  amount 
smaller  than  was  secured  last  year  by  any  one  of  more  than  twenty 
different  mines.  During  the  present  year  the  great  Anaconda  mine, 
of  Butte,  has  produced,  during  nearly  every  month,  as  much  copper 
as  was  supplied  by  all  the  mines  of  the  world,  in  the  entire  year 
of  1811. 

The  Past. 

Fifty  years  ago,  in  1861,  the  world's  output  of  copper  was  but 
a  trifle  more  than  100,000,000  pounds,  a  production  that  was  ex- 
ceeded, in  1910,  by  the  Anaconda,  American  Smelters  Securities 
Co.,  and  Phelps,  Dodge  &  Co.  The  production  of  the  year  1900, 
the  last  of  the  Nineteenth  Century,  was  just  fifty  times  as  great  as 
that  of  the  year  1800.  Should  the  same  ratio  of  increase  be  main- 
tained during  the  Twentieth  Century,  the  output  of  the  year  A.  D. 
2000  would  be  24.318,150  long  tons  of  copper,  twenty-five  times  as 
much  as  the  present  production,  and  even  a  fifty-fold  increase  for 
the  Twentieth  Century  would  allow  an  average  increase  of  less 
than  four  per  cent,  while  the  average  annual  increase,  for  the 
decade  beginning  1900  and  ending  1910,  was  almost  exactly  seven 
per  cent,  compounded  yearly.  Those  who  foresee  a  complete  col- 
lapse in  the  copper  industry  would  do  well  to  give  consideration  to 
the  actual  figures  of  increase  during  the  past.  The  copper  industry 
does  not  move  forward  at  even  an  approximately  steady  rate,  from 
year  to  year,  but  is  given  to  advancing  by  great  leaps,  almost  in- 
evitably followed  by  periods  of  quiescence,  or  even  of  actual  retro- 
gression. High  prices  for  the  metal  stimulate  production,  while 
curtailing  consumption,  and,  as  a  direct  consequence,  output  is  in- 
creased, which  decreases  prices,  which  in  turn  brings  about  de- 
creased production,  due  to  the  inability  of  small  and  weak  pro- 
ducers to  stand  .the  strain  of  low  prices.  Decreased  production 
again  brings  about  high  prices,  and  the  cycle  is  begun  anew.  Much 
the  same  conditions  existed  in  the  American  iron  and  steel  industry 
for  50  years,  until  the  formation  of  the  United  States  Steel  Cor- 


PAST,    PRESENT    AND    FUTURE    OF    COPPER  147 

poration,  which,  while  unable  to  prevent  periods  of  depression,  as 
its  sponsors  fondly  hoped,  has  proven  a  wonderfully  steadying 
factor  in  the  iron  and  steel  market,  serving  the  purpose  of  a  gigan- 
tic balance-wheel. 

Grow  tli. 

The  growth  of  the  copper  industry  is  best  shown  by  the  fol- 
lowing figures  of  the  world's  production,  by  decades,  in  long  tons : 
91,000  tons  in  the  decade  ending  1810;  96,000  tons  in  1820;  135,000 
tons  in  1830;  218,000  tons  in  1840;  291,000  tons  in  1850;  507,000 
tons  in  1860;  900,000  tons  in  1870;  1,189,000  tons  in  1880;  2,373,000 
tons  in  1890;  3,708,000  tons  in  1900;  7,390,000  tons  in  1910.  The 
influence  of  the  electrical  industry  upon  the  consumption  of  copper 
is  plainly  shown  by  the  figures  since  1880.  The  production  of  the 
seventh  decade  of  the  Nineteenth  Century  was  only  900,000  long 
tons,  or  a  trifle  less  than  ten  times  the  output  of  the  first  decade  of 
the  century,  while  the  production  of  the  last  decade  of  the  century, 
ending  1900,  was  more  than  forty  times  the  output  of  the  first 
decade,  and  was  more  than  four  times  as  great  as  that  of  the  decade 
ending  in  1870,  only  thirty  years  before.  The  output  of  the  decade 
ending  1910  was  more  than  six  times  as  great  as  the  output  of  the 
decade  ending  in  1880,  and  was  almost  exactly  double  the  produc- 
tion of  the  previous  decade  ending  in  1900.  The  production  of 
copper  by  the  world,  amounting  to  approximately  7,390,000  long 
tons,  for  the  decade  ending  1910,  amounted  to  more  than  three- 
fourths  of  the  total  world's  production  of  copper  for  the  entire 
preceding  century. 

Figures  of  production  and  consumption  of  any  given  com- 
modity in  universal  use  may  differ  from  year  to  year,  according  to 
whether  a  surplus  is  accumulated,  or  a  preceding  surplus  is  drawn 
upon,  but  over  long-term  periods,  production  and  consumption 
necessarily  are  the  same,  and,  figured  by  decades,  it  is  safe  to  say 
that  the  figures  of  production  are  practically  the  figures  of  con- 
sumption. At  present  there  is  a  copper  surplus,  of  which  much  is 
heard,  but  to  show  how  comparatively  unimportant  the  present  sur- 
plus is,  when  compared  with  the  figures  of  output  for  the  preceding 
decade,  it  may  be  stated  that  the  world's  surplus  of  copper,  at  the 
present  time,  is  slightly  less  than  300,000,000  pounds  of  finished 
metal,  or  a  trifle  under  135,000  long  tons,  an  amount  less  than  5^2 
per  cent  of  the  total  production  of  the  decade,  and  equivalent  to 
only  about  eight  weeks  supply  of  copper,  at  the  present  time  meas- 
uring the  supply  either  by  productive  capacity  or  by  consumptive 
demand. 


148         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

* 

Very  exact  figures  are  available  regarding  production,  divi- 
dends, costs  and  metal  prices  of  the  mines  of  the  Lake  Superior 
district  since  the  first  production  was  secured,  in  the  year  1845,  the 
total  output  for  that  year  having  been  only  24,880  pounds  of  fin- 
ished copper.  The  total  production  of  fine  copper,  by  Lake  Superior 
mines,  from  1845  to  1910,  inclusive,  a  period  of  sixty-six  years,  or 
two-thirds  of  a  century,  was  5,122,478,402  pounds,  having  a  gross 
value  of  $726,849,840,  from  which  were  paid  dividends  of  $182,- 
824,770,  the  ratio  of  dividends  to  gross  values,  for  this  entire 
period,  amounting  to  25.1  per  cent,  and  dividends,  divided  by  cop- 
per production,  show  average  dividend  payments  of  3.56  cents  per 
pound.  The  average  price  received  for  all  Lake  Superior  copper, 
for  this  period  of  sixty-six  years,  was  14.19  cents  per  pound,  which- 
after  deduction  of  dividends,  leaves  an  estimated  cost  of  10.63  cents 
per  pound,  for  all  years.  By  adding  the  figures  of  expenditures  on 
unproductive  mines,  amounting  to  about  $60,000,000,  the  cost  of 
Lake  Superior  copper  would  be  made  almost  nl/2  cents  per  pound, 
and  by  adding  a  further  $15,000,000  for  assessments  on  mines  that 
have  since  repaid  in  dividends  the  original  assessments,  the  cost  of 
copper  would  be  made  about  11.85  cents  per  pound,  leaving  a  net 
margin  of  profit,  for  the  entire  production,  of  almost  exactly  two 
cents  per  pound,  plus  the  present  aggregate  value  of  the  various 
active  mines. 

Average  Cost  of  Lake  Superior  Copper. 

Omitting  the  production  of  mines  that  have  not  proven  profit- 
able, the  average  cost  of  Lake  Superior  copper,  yielded  by  dividend- 
paying  mines,  has  averaged  about  9.5  cents  per  pound,  for  all  years, 
and  the  present  cost  of  making  copper,  by  all  of  the  producing  Lake 
Superior  mines,  probably  is  slightly  above  nine  cents  per  pound. 
The  actual  average  cost  of  making  copper,  in  the  leading  producing 
fields,  probably  is  between  nine  and  ten  cents  per  pound,  at  the 
present  time.  Some  of  the  newer  fields,  which  are  skimming  their 
cream,  show  lower  costs,  but  it  is  difficult  to  see  where  the  world 
will  be  able  to  produce  its  copper,  in  years  to  come,  at  an  average 
cost  materially  under  ten  cents  per  pound,  this  figure  excluding  the 
limited  production  of  badly  planned  and  badly  managed  mines, 
which  yield  only  a  small  fraction  of  the  total  copper  output,  but 
secure  their  metal  at  an  average  cost  very  much  higher  than  the 
average  cost  of  all  mines. 

For  the  immediate  future,  the  supply  of  copper  in  sight  is  fully 
adequate,  and  no  unduly  high  prices  need  be  anticipated,  but  the 
figures  clearly  foreshadow  another  boom  period,  within  the  next 


PAST,    PRESENT    AND    FUTURE    OF    COPPER  149 

two  to  four  years,  at  which  time  the  alarmists  will  be  as  badly 
scared,  for  fear  that  the  copper  supply  is  petering  out,  as  they  now 
are  for  fear  that  the  production  is  so  much  greater  than  consumption 
that  nothing  but  permanent  disaster  is  in  sight.  Allowing  an  average 
increase  of  consumption  of  7  per  cent  yearly,  the  figure  that  has 
ruled  during  the  first  nine  years  of  the  present  century,1  the  world's 
requirements  of  copper  will  amount  to  approximately  1,650,000  long 
tons  in  1920;  2,975,000  long  tons  in  1930,  and  5,350,000  long  tons  in 
1940 — the  latter  named  year,  now  only  29  years  ahead,  calling  for  a 
copper  output  almost  six  times  that  of  the  present  rate.  Twenty- 
nine  years  ago,  or  in  the  year  1882,  the  world's  production  of  copper 
was  181,622  tons,  or  about  one-fifth  of  the  present  output.  Allow- 
ing for  even  a  five-fold  expansion  during  the  next  three  decades,  to 
correspond  with  the  five-fold  expansion  in  the  three  decades  past, 
the  world's  copper  requirements  in  1840  will  be  more  than  4,500,000 
long  tons.  Should  the  ratio  of  increased  production  and  consump- 
tion remain  at  an  average  of  seven  per  cent  for  the  balance  of  this 
century,  the  world  would  yield  and  consume,  in  the  year  A.  D. 
2000,  about  175,000,000  long  tons  of  copper,  a  quantity  of  the  red 
metal  more  than  double  the  tonnage  of  the  world's  present  produc- 
tion of  iron  and  steel. 

The  First  Decade  of  the  Twentieth  Century. 
A  survey  of  the  progress  made  by  the  copper  industry  during 
the  first  decade  of  the  Twentieth  Century,  now  lacking  only  a  few 
weeks  of  completion,  shows  no  revolutionary  changes,  but  does 
show  steady  and  in  some  cases  phenomenal  progress,  in  nearly  every 
division  of  the  industry.  In  the  matter  of  mines,  the  old  districts 
of  Butte  and  Lake  Superior  remain  the  largest  producers,  but 
Arizona,  with  a  half  dozen  important  copper  fields,  passed  Montana 
in  output  in  1908,  though  again  taking  second  place  in  1909.  In 
copper  mining,  the  most  important  development  of  the  decade  has 
been  the  making  of  the  so-called  porphyry  mines,  in  which  dis- 
seminated copper  sulphides  are  mined  from  chistose  or  porphyritic 
country  rocks.  The  development  of  such  important  new  producers 
as  the  Utah  Copper,  Nevada  Consolidated,  Miami  and  others  of 
this  class,  has  alarmed  many  people,  who  jump  to  the  conclusion  that 
the  so-called  porphyry  mines  must  close  down  the  older  mines, 
developed  on  veins  in  Butte  and  other  camps,  and  on  the  stratified 
trap  beds  of  Lake  Superior.  There  is  no  real  occasion  for  this 
alarm,  as  the  porphyry  mines,  while  highly  important,  are  not  apt 
to  be  developed  in  large  numbers.  In  fact,  the  entire  western  part 
of  the  United  States  has  been  scoured,  by  the  keenest  and  strongest 


150         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

aggregations  of  capital  in  the  copper  business,  for  promising  coun- 
try-rock deposits,  with  a  net  result,  to  date,  rather  insignificant  in 
the  number  of  properties  developed,  though  highly  important  in 
output  secured  already,  and  even  more  important  in  promise  of 
future  production.  When  the  Mesaba  iron  range  was  opened, 
eighteen  years  ago,  a  similar  wave  of  pessimism  swept  over  the 
mine-owners  of  the  older  iron  ranges  in  Michigan  and  Wisconsin, 
but  time  has  proven  that  the  high-grade  ores  of  the  Mesaba,  capable 
of  being  mined  by  steam-shovel,  at  wonderfully  low  costs,  are 
absolutely  necessary  in  furnishing  an  adequate  supply  of  ore  to  the 
iron  and  steel  works  of  this  country,  and  similarly  it  will  be  found, 
as  time  passes,  that  the  production  of  the  porphyry  mines  is  abso- 
lutely essential  in  supplying  the  copper  needed  by  the  world,  at  any- 
thing like  a  fair  figure  to  the  consumer.  Processes  of  actual  ore 
extraction  have  been  modified  and  improved,  in  many  fields,  with 
a  resultant  increase  in  safety  to  miners,  and  decrease  in  cost  of  ore 
extraction.  The  steam-shovel  has  come  to  stay,  in  copper  mining. 
Mines  Slo^v  to  Adopt  Electric  Power. 

Strange  to  say,  the  copper  mines,  which  are  vitally  interested 
in  extending  the  use  of  copper,  were  somewhat  slow  in  adopting 
electric  power,  but  rapid  progress  has  been  made  in  this  direction 
during  the  past  decade,  and  all  of  the  mines  of  Butte  are  now  elec- 
trified, while  there  has  been  a  great  increase  in  the  use  of  electric 
energy  in  the  Lake  Superior  district.  The  constantly  increasing 
use  of  hydro-electric  power  is  now  restrained,  and  further  restraints 
are  threatened,  by  the  conservationists.  The  newly  adopted  system 
at  the  Anaconda  mine,  in  Butte,  which  combines  the  utilization  of 
hydraulic,  electric  and  pneumatic  power,  offers  great  possibilities 
of  pliancy  and  economy,  and  the  lead  of  the  Anaconda  is  likely  to  be 
followed  by  many  other  important  mines. 

In  ore  reduction,  material  progress  has  been  made  in  concen- 
tration, the  very  general  adoption  of  Wilfley  tables  and  similar 
devices  permitting  the  saving  of  fines  previously  wasted.  Hydraulio 
classifiers,  settling  tanks  and  a  variety  of  ingenious  devices  for  the 
saving  of  the  uttermost  mineral  values',  have  aided  in  this  work,  and 
are  now  found  in  most  important  mills.  Slimes,  previously  wasted, 
are  now  carefully  collected  in  slum-ponds,  and  reworked ;  with  an 
aggregate  yearly  extraction  of  many  millions  of  pounds  of  copper 
formerly  wasted. 

Perhaps  the  most  striking  progress  made  during  the  past 
decade,  in  any  division  of  the  copper  industry,  has  been  in  smelting. 
No  new  principles  have  been  adopted  in  either  reverberatory  or 


PAST,    I'kKSEXT    AND    FUTURE    OF    COFFER  151 

blast-furnace  work,  but  reverberatories  of  a  gigantic  size  hitherto 
unknown  have  been  adopted  at  many  plants,  while  even  more  strik- 
ing progress  has  been  made  in  the  capacity  of  blast-furnaces.  Ten 
years  ago,  a  3OO-ton  blast-furnace  was  considered  exceptionally 
large,  and  near  the  possible  maximum  of  size,  but  the  Washoe 
works  of  the  Anaconda  Copper  Alining  Co.,  again  blazing  the  way, 
now  have  two  furnaces,  each  56  inches  by  51  feet  in  size,  with  a 
maximum  daily  smelting  capacity  of  1,800  tons  each,  and  a  third 
furnace  that  is  56  inches  wide  and  87  feet  long  at  the  tuyeres,  this 
mammoth  furnace  actually  having  smelted  3,100  tons  within  24 
hours.  It  has  been  my  privilege  to  see  this  great  blast-furnace 
with  smelting  in  progress  at  the  western  end,  while  the  eastern  end 
was  frozen,  and  repairs  in  progress  within  the  bosh. 

The  past  decade  has  been  a  further  extension  of  the  electrolytic 
process  of  refining,  and  the  great  bulk  of  the  world's  copper  now  is 
refined  by  electrolysis.  In  fact,  very  little  finished  copper,  other 
than  electrolytic,  reaches  the  market,  except  from  the  Lake  Superior 
mines,  the  product  of  which  commands  a  premium  by  reason  of  its 
extra  toughness  and  superior  adaptibility  to  drawing  and  stamping. 
With  depth,  many  of  the  Lake  Superior  mines  have  shown  a 
marked  increase  in  arsenic,  and  for  this  reason  a  considerable  part 
of  the  Lake  Superior  copper  now  is  refined  electrolytically,  and  sold 
as  electrolytic  and  not  as  Lake  copper. 

Combines  and  Mergers. 

At  various  times  in  the  past  efforts  have  been  made  at  copper 
corners,  but  these  have  proven  uniformly  unsuccessful.  The  first 
copper  corner  was  by  the  Associated  Smelters,  of  Swansea,  and 
might  be  termed  the  original  copper  trust.  The  Associated  Smelters, 
which  flourished  from  1840  to  1860,  were  most  arbitrary  in  their 
operations,  buying  cheaply,  selling  dearly,  and  zealously  guarding 
their  smelting  processes.  As  a  result  of  the  very  short-sighted 
policy  of  screwing  prices  of  ore  and  matte  to  the  lowest  possible 
figures,  while  selling  the  finished  product  at  the  highest  possible 
prices,  with  the  ore  producers  aggravated  by  arbitrary  charges  for 
draftage  and  moisture,  and  the  further  grievance  of  unfair  assay 
methods,  the  mine-owners  were  led  to  build  independent  smelters 
at  and  near  the  mines,  in  most  of  the  principal  copper  producing  dis- 
tricts, these  effectually  destroying  the  power  of  the  Associated 
Smelters  of  Swansea  as  the  arbiter  of  the  copper  industry. 

The  second  attempt  at  a  copper  corner  was  made  by  the 
Societe  des  Metaux,  of  Paris,  under  the  leadership  of  M.  Secretan, 
the  Societe  des  Metaux  becoming,  in  February,  1887,  one  of  the  six- 


152         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

teen  underwriters  that  organized  the  Syndicat  Secretan,  with  a 
nominal  capitalization  of  $13,587,000.  This  syndicate  contracted 
with  the  leading  copper  producers  for  their  output,  and  speedily 
advanced  the  price  of  the  metal  to  17$  cents,  effecting  an  increase 
of  more  than  50  per  cent  in  price  within  one  month.  Consumption 
immediately  declined  to  a  low  figure,  and  the  Secretan  Syndicate 
borrowed  enormous  sums,  to  carry  its  rapidly  accumulating  copper, 
from  French,  German  and  English  banking  houses,  the  Comptoir 
d'Escompte  of  Paris  alone  lending  the  enormous  sum  of  $33,368,000 
to  the  Syndicat  Secretan.  This  corner  broke  early  in  1889,  after 
about  eighteen  months  existence,  and  in  a  single  day,  in  the  spring 
of  1889,  the  price  of  copper  dropped  from  £70  down  to  £35  per  long 
ton.  About  four  years  were  required  to  clean  up  the  wreckage 
remaining  from  this  ill-advised  corner,  and  put  the  copper  industry 
soundly  on  its  feet  again. 

The  third  attempt  at  a  copper  corner  was  made  in  February, 
1889,  by  the  organization  of  the  Amalgamated  Copper  Co.,  which 
corporation  maintained  the  price  of  copper,  arbitrarily,  at  17  cents 
per  pound,  until  October,  1901,  when  an  accumulation  of  200,- 
000,000  pounds  of  metal  compelled  a  break  that  took  the  price  of 
copper  down  to  about  12  cents  a  pound,  and  about  three  years  were 
required  by  the  industry  to  recover  from  the  effects  of  this  corner. 

The  price  of  26*4  cents  per  pound,  reached  in  March,  1907, 
by  Lake  copper,  was  not  the  result  of  any  corner,  but  came  about 
through  an  ill-advised  scramble  by  consumers,  who  feared  that 
they  could  not  secure  the  metal.  As  a  result  of  the  high  price,  con- 
sumption was  curtailed  sharply  in  all  directions,  as  happens  in- 
evitably under  such  unsatisfactory  price  conditions,  and  the  cop- 
per industry  of  the  world  still  suffers  from  the  existence  of  a  sur- 
plus of  slightly  under  300,000,000  pounds  of  metal,  remaining  from 
a  surplus  that,  including  both  visible  and  invisible  supplies,  reached 
about  450,000,000  pounds  at  the  end  of  1909,  since  which  time  there 
has  been  a  small  but  steady  decrease  in  surplus  from  month  to 
month. 

Tendency   Towards  Larger   Units. 

The  tendency  in  copper  mining,  as  in  all  other  branches  of  in- 
dustry, is  toward  combination  in  ever-larger  units.  This  tendency 
is  based  upon  and  governed  by  purely  econpmic  laws,  and  the  laws 
of  political  economy  are  so  much  stronger  than  any  law  ever  de- 
vised by  a  parliament,  or  any  ukase  ever  promulgated  by  a  despot, 
that  it  requires  no  spirit  of  prophecy  to  forecast  the  ultimate  out- 


PAST,    PRESENT   AND    FUTURE    OF    COPPER  153 

come  of  the  present  clash  between  the  laws  of  political  economy  and 
the  laws  of  Congress. 

In  the  copper  industry  the  great  bulk  of  production  now  is  fur- 
nished by  about  a  dozen  different  interests.  The  Amalgamated 
Copper  Co.  has  a  productive  capacity  of  about  300,000,000  pounds 
yearly,  with  an  actual  output  last  year  of  223,808,546  pounds.  The 
American  Smelting  &  Refining  Co.,  or  Guggenheim  interests,  have 
a  productive  capacity  only  slightly  inferior  to  the  Amalgamated, 
with  an  actual  output  of  174,150,000  pounds  in  1910,  which  figure 
will  be  exceeded  materially  this  year.  The  production  of  Phelps, 
Dodge  &  Co.  was  116,888,070  pounds  in  1910,  while  smelter  pro- 
duction, including  custom  ores  treated,  was  138,805,562  pounds, 
and  the  sales  agency  of  this  firm  handled  194,138,696  pounds  of 
copper  last  year.  The  Calumet  &  Hecla,  with  its  subsidiaries,  has 
a  productive  capacity  of  nearly  or  quite  150,000,000  pounds  yearly. 
The  Rothschild  interests,  controlling  the  Rio-Tinto  of  Spain,  and 
the  Boleo  of  Mexico,  have  a  copper  output  of  more  than  100,000,- 
ooo  pounds  yearly. 

The  leading  copper  producers  of  the  world  are  now  operating 
under  check,  a  10  per  cent  reduction  in  output  having  been  put  into 
effect  in  August  of  last  year.  Under  the  Sherman  anti-trust  law, 
this  checking  of  production  would  be  considered  criminal,  if  it  could 
be  proven,  yet  the  reduction  of  output  was  absolutely,  necessary  in 
order  to  save  the  copper  industry  from  a  prolonged  period  of  utter 
demoralization,  during  which  scores  of  millions  of  dollars  would 
have  been  lost  by  investors,  and  a  quarter  million  or  more  of  work- 
ingmen  would  have  suffered  severely,  many  of  them  losing  their 
jobs,  and  the  remainder  suffering  severe  cuts  in  wages.  We  have 
the  authority  of  eminent  statesmen,  totally  devoid  of  business  ex- 
perience, that  the  Sherman  act  is  a  panacea  for  all  ills  of  the  body 
politic,  yet  no  sensible  business  man  would  do  otherwise,  if  he  had 
the  power,  than  to  reduce  production  at  a  time  when  a  surplus 
product  threatened  not  only  the  small  remaining  profits,  but  the 
very  foundations  of  the  copper  industry.  The  issue  thus  is  drawn 
very  plainly  between  our  present  politico-criminal  law  and  all  the 
laws  of  business  and  of  political  economy. 

Business   and   Politics. 

I  have  no  connection,  direct  or  indirect,  with  any  copper  min- 
ing company  or  copper  producer,  except  that,  in  a  general  way,  I 
have  small  business  dealings  with  a  great  majority  of  the  actual 
copper  producers  of  this  and  foreign  countries,  hence  I  speak  with- 


154        PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

out  personal  prejudice,  and  not  as  the  mouthpiece  of  any  individual 
copper  interest. 

The  greatest  present  menace  to  the  copper  industry  in  the 
United  States  is  a  menace  that  is  common  to  all  branches  of  mining. 
The  entire  American  industry  of  mining  is  threatened  by  men  op- 
erating under  the  names  of  progress  and  reform,  whose  slogan  is 
conservation,  but  who  are  political  economists  of  the  Stone  Age, 
and  first  cousins,  in  mental  capacity,  to  the  Troglodytes.  The  con- 
servation experts  of  the  forest  service  are  systematically  hamper- 
ing legitimate  mining  operations  throughout  the  Western  states, 
and  both  law  and  justice  are  disregarded  by  these  conservationists, 
while  the  federal  departments  affected  are  governed  more  by  rul- 
ings than  by  law.  Congress  has  made  the  very  grave  and  dangerous 
mistake  of  endowing  the  executive  departments  of  our  govern- 
ment with  the  power  to  promulgate  rulings  that  have  the  force  of 
law,  and  in  some  of  the  departments  rulings  have  been  put  into 
effect  that  not  only  are  arbitrary  and  unjust,  but  that  also  are  abso- 
lutely illegal,  yet  the  poor  miner,  who  has  complied  with  all  the  re- 
quirements of  the  law,  is  liable  to  see  his  property,  to  which  he  is 
clearly  entitled,  both  by  law  and  justice,  taken  from  him  by  the 
officials  of  the  forestry  service,  under  the  slightest  pretext,  and  is 
denied  access  to  or  recourse  by  the  courts.  The  most  odious  forms 
of  despotism  can  show  nothing  worse,  in  this  particular,  than  the 
hideous  imposition  under  which  honest  miners  are  suffering  in  the 
Western  states  of  our  country. 

Anaconda    and    the    Guggenheims. 

The  conservationists,  many  of  whom  might  with  greater  truth 
be  termed  conversationists,  would  close  the  Washoe  Works  of 
Montana,  the  greatest  reduction  plant  in  the  world,  with  a  monthly 
output  valued  at  millions  of  dollars,  employing  thousands  of  men, 
and  indirectly  giving  employment  to  tens  of  thousands  of  men, 
under  the  childish  plea  that  the  smelter  fumes  are  injuring  timber 
on  the  federal  forest  reserves — timber  that,  in  a  pinch,  might  fur- 
nish fairly  good  lodge-poles  for  Indian  tepees. 

The  Guggenheims  are  the  bogey-men  with  which  the  conser- 
vationists most  frequently  alarm  the  public.  We  have  had  it  dinned 
into  our  cars  by  innumerable  patriots  seeking  office,  and  repeatedly 
set  before  our  eyes,  in  every  yellow  newspaper  and  muck-raking 
magazine,  that  "the  Guggenheims  are  stealing  Alaska."  As  a  mat- 
ter of  fact,  the  Guggenheims  control  a  copper  mine  in  the  interior 
of  Alaska  that  is  a  wonder  in  its  way,  yet  which  cannot  be  rated 
at  more  than  a  third-class  property.  This  mine,  the  Bonanza,  is  a 


PAST,    PRESENT    AND    FUTURE    OF    COPPER  155 

sort  of  copper-plated  gold-brick,  in  that  an  interior  core  of  lime- 
stone is  surrounded  by  phenomenally  high  grade  bornite  and  copper 
glance.  No  competent  mining  man  who  has  visited  this  property 
ever  has  estimated  the  amount  of  ore  in  sight,  and  safely  to  be  in- 
ferred, as  capable  of  yielding  more  than  100,000,000  pounds  of  fin- 
ished copper,  a  total  production  equivalent  to  only  one  year's  max- 
imum output  by  any  one  of  the  six  leading  copper  mines  of  the 
world.  In  order  to  get  this  ore  out  of  a  wilderness  the  Guggenheim 
interests  have  built  the  Copper  River  &  Northwestern  Railway,  a 
line  of  195  miles  length,  variously  estimated  to  have  cost  from 
$13,000,000  to  $25,000,000.  The  gross  value  of  all  the  copper  con- 
tained in  the  Bonanza  mine,  taking  the  outside  estimate  of  tonnage, 
is  considerably  less  than  the  lowest  estimate  of  cost  of  this  rail- 
way, and  the  net  profits  derivable  from  the  Bonanza  mine  cannot, 
by  the  most  liberal  figuring,  be  estimated  at  more  than  $4,000,000 
to  $5,000,000.  Instead  of  being  commended  for  their  enterprise 
and  courage  in  building  this  railway  through  an  arctic  wilderness, 
the  Guggenheims  are  held  up  to  public  scorn  as  thieves  and  robbers. 
This  railway  cuts  through  workable  beds  of  coal,  but  is  prohibited 
by  the  federal  authorities  from  developing  or  using  this  coal,  and 
is  compelled  to  import  inferior  coal  from  British  Columbia,  at  a 
cost  more  than  double  that  of  domestic  coal,  if  its  mining  were  per- 
mitted. Not  only  does  the  railway  suffer  from  this  arbitrary  ac- 
tion by  the  federal  government,  but  the  50,000  unfortunate  Amer- 
ican citizens  who  live  in  Alaska  are  compelled  to  pay  double  or 
triple  the  price  they  should  pay  for  fuel,  through  efforts  of  the  con- 
servationists, backed  by  the  federal  government,  to  "save"  the  coal 
for  some  future  use,  at  an  indefinite  date.  It  scarcely  seems  strange, 
in  the  light  of  this  situation,  that  mourning  was  donned  in  Alaska 
\vhen  the  high  priest  of  conservation  reached  that  land,  which  the 
conservationists  seem  to  consider  a  sort  of  penal  colony.  The  con- 
servation of  our  mineral,  timber  and  power  resources  should  be  ef- 
fected along  legal  and  business  lines,  and  not  under  the  guidance  of 
spiritualistic  visions. 

The  reformers  as  these  gentlemen  advocate  themselves,  are  ad- 
vocating the  government  building  and  operation  of  railways  in 
Alaska,  and  the  government  ownership  and  operation  of  coal  mines, 
which  is  state  socialism,  pure  and  simple,  and  any  man  seriously  ad- 
vocating such  a  policy  is  a  socialist,  no  matter  what  he  may  choose 
to  call  himself.  It  is  further  advocated  by  the  junior  senator  from 
Wisconsin  and  his  official  and  unofficial  organs  that  the  government 
also  should  buy  the  Copper  River  &  Northwestern  railway  from  the 


156         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

Guggenheims.  Doubtless  the  Guggenheims  will  be  very  glad  in- 
deed to  sell  their  railway,  which  is  threatened  by  tidal  floods  and 
glacial  floods,  with  its  principal  bridge  across '  the  Copper  river 
threatened  by  a  glacier  itself,  but  it  is  difficult  to  see  where  the  long- 
suffering  taxpayer  will  benefit  by  such  a  purchase. 

The  federal  government  already  has  withdrawn  immense  tracts 
of  oil,  coal  and  phosphate  lands,  and  the  next  step  in  this  cleverly 
devised  socialistic  propaganda  will  be  to  withdraw  from  entry  or 
inhibit  mineral  entries  upon  iron,  copper,  lead,  zinc,  silver  and  gold 
lands. 

Figures  of  Conservationists  Ridiculous. 

The  pretext  for  past  withdrawals  is  that  our  mineral  resources 
are  being  depleted  so  rapidly  that  there  is  danger  of  their  extinc- 
tion in  the  near  future  unless  administered  by  an  all-wise  and  all- 
powerful  central  government,  which  can  make  no  mistake  and  can 
do  no  wrong.  The  figures  regarding  our  natural  resources,  put 
forth  apparently  in  earnest  by  some  of  the  leading  conservationists, 
are  so  utterly  ridiculous  that  it  is  impossible  to  regard  them  seri- 
ously. There  is  more  iron  ore,  existing  in  a  single  county  in  my 
own  state  of  Michigan  than  any  professional  conservationist  ever 
has  estimated  to  exist  in  the  entire  world.  This  is  made  as  a  plain 
statement  of  fact,  and  those  who  think,  to  the  contrary  are  chal- 
lenged to  impeach  the  assertion. 

The  lawless  actions  of  the  forestry  bureau,  which  is  perhaps 
the  most  odious  of  our  bureaucratic  iniquities,  have  been  of  a  sort 
to  arouse  the  alarm  of  all  thinking  men  who  believe  in  self-govern- 
ment. Apparently  it  is  the  cunningly  devised  scheme  of  the  leaders 
of  the  so-called  conservation  movement  to  expropriate  the  public 
lands  now  held  by -the  federal  government  in  trust  for  the  benefit 
of  any  and  all  citizens  who  will  develop  them  and  hold  these  public 
lands  for  the  sole  benefit  of  the  bureaucrats,  who  will  enjoy  the 
usufruct,  through  a  carefully  planned  system  of  leases,  by  which 
the  water  power,  forests,  mines  and  arable  lands  will  be  leased  to 
corporations  that  are  amenable  to  the  benevolent  control  of  the 
doctrinaries  and  to  individuals  who  can  be  terrorized  to  conform 
to  the  exactions  of  the  bureaucracy.  The  opportunities  for  graft 
that  are  contained  in  such  a  system  are  almost  inconceivably  great, 
and,  comparing  their  claims  with  their  actions,  the  conclusion  is 
irresistible  that  the  conservation  movement,  as  now  managed,  is  not 
a  genuine  effort  to  improve  the  condition  of  the  American  people, 
but  a  cleverly  devised  scheme  to  deprive  the  people  of  their  landed 
heritage  and  fix  upon  their  necks  the  iron  collars  of  serfdom,  to  the 


PAST,    PRESENT    AND    FUTURE    OF    COPPER  157 

end  that  a  more  gorgeously  and  richly  endowed  bureaucracy  may 
flourish  upon  the  soil  of  what  once  was  a  free  country. 

It  is  said,  and  apparently  with  reason,  that  the  spy  system 
of  the  United  States  is  now  the  finest  and  most  extensive  in  the 
world,  excelling  even  those  of  Russia  and  Turkey,  heretofore  the 
most  progressive  nations  in  the  matter  of  thoroughly  organized  es- 
pionage. We  also  have  the  benevolent  activities  of  an  attorney 
general  who  is  now  vigorously  prosecuting  the  kindling-wood  trust. 
It  is  obvious  that  the  shaving-paper  combine  and  the  office-towel 
monopoly  had  better  watch  out,  for  their  turn  may  come  next.  Why 
does  not  the  attorney  general  prosecute  the  labor  trusts,  unions, 
which  already  are  trusts  in  the  meaning  of  the  interstate  commerce 
law,  existing  in  open  defiance  of  the  beneficent  provisions  of  the 
Sherman  act?  The  answer  seems  obvious.  The  present  activities 
of  the  United  States  Department  of  Justice,  as  it  is  termed  officially, 
afford  a  spectacle  for  gods  and  men. 

Business  Suffering  from  Uncertainty. 

Business  throughout  the  United  States  is  suffering  from  un- 
certainty— which  has  been  accentuated,  rather  than  decreased,  by 
the  recent  decisions  of  the  Supreme  Court,  which  read  into  the 
Sherman  act  a  provision  that  only  "unreasonable"  restraint  of  trade 
should  be  punishable  under  the  terms  of  this  act.  As  Richard  Olney 
justly  remarked,  this  leaves  the  Sherman  law  about  as  clear  as  if 
Congress  were  to  pass  a  law  stating  that  only  a  "reasonable"  tariff 
should  be  imposed,  and  leave  the  adjustment  of  all  duties  to  the 
Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States. 

This  nation  has  been  made  great  and  prosperous  by  the  initiative 
and  enterprise  of  the  individual,  yet  the  theorists  bid  us  throw  aside 
the  habits  and  course  of  conduct  of  centuries,  and  depend  solely 
upon  the  initiative — God  save  the  mark — of  the  bureaucrats.  WThy 
not  speak  out  boldly  what  all  sensible  and  patriotic  citizens  are 
thinking  throughout  this  country?  We  are  suffering  from  a  most 
odious  form  of  bureaucracy,  fortified  by  an  extensive  system  of 
paid  spies,  an  organized  claque,  a  clever  press  bureau,  and  the  sys- 
tematic support  of  that  section  of  the  press  noted  mainly  for  its 
dubious  motives  and  devious  politics.  Some  citizens  with  defective 
hearing  take  the  clamor  of  this  portion  of  the  press,  desirous  of 
cheaper  wood  pulp,  for  the  real  voice  of  the  nation.  It  is  time  that 
the  yellow  newspapers,  muckraking  magazines  and  purely  political 
conservationists  were  told  to  stand  aside  and  permit  the  federal 
government  to  be  run  once  more  in  accordance  with  law  and  com- 
mon sense.  Some  of  the  gentlemen  who  are  preaching  progress 


158         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

and  conservation  have  combined  moral  platitudes  with  business 
turpitude,  and  label  their  product  as  reform.  In  the  name  of  prog- 
ress they  bid  us  turn  our  faces  to  the  rear;  in  the  name  of  conser- 
vation of  our  natural  resources,  for  generations  yet  unborn,  they 
forbid  us  to  utilize  the  mineral  power  and  timber  resources  re- 
quired for  the  needs  of  the  present  generation.  Their  plan  of  state 
ownership  of  mines  and  water  powers  is  state  socialism,  very  thinly 
disguised.  These  men  are  enemies  of  the  republic,  who  under  the 
specious  cloak  of  declamatory  patriotism  would  rob  us  of  our  right 
to  self-government. 

Our  worthy  president  takes  the  stand  that  because  the  Sherman 
act  is  law  it  must  be  enforced  rigidly,  regardless  of  consequences. 
If  this  be  the  case,  it  necessarily  follows  that  all  federal  laws  must 
be  rigidly  enforced,  regardless  of  consequences,  and  it  would  be 
interesting  to  learn  why  our  federal  government  does  not  enforce, 
or  even  attempt  to  enforce,  the  fifteenth  amendment  to  the  Consti- 
tution of  the  United  States,  which  reads  as  follows :  "The  rights 
of  citizens  of  the  United  States  to  vote  shall  not  be  denied  or 
abridged  by  the  United  States,  or  by  any  state,  on  account  of  race, 
color  or  previous  condition  of  servitude."  Is  it  possible  that  the 
Sherman  act  takes  precedence  of  the  Constitution? 


Conservation  and  the  People. 

BY  JESSE  KNIGHT, 
PROVO,    UTAH. 


This  Mining  Congress  is  convened,  I  take  it,  not  only  for  the 
purpose  of  considering  the  interests  of  the  mining  industry,  but 
the  best  interests  of  the  American  people  as  a  whole.  Coming 
from  a  state  that  has  in  its  advancement  been  freighted  with  diffi- 
culties, as  have  many  of  the  inter-mountain  states,  and  assuming- 
no  knowledge  but  that  acquired  in  the  tough  school  of  experience 
of  a  Western  trail  blazer  and  pioneer,  I  must  be  permitted  to  ex- 
press my  views,  as  such,  if  at  all,  before  this  Congress. 

Personally,  the  greatest  efforts  of  my  life  have  been  directed 
toward  the  development  of  the  mines  of  the  West,  particularly 
those  of  my  own  state;  and  as  a  miner  I  have  always  had  great 
hopes  for  the  future  of  Utah  and  not  only  for  the  future  of  Utah 
but  for  the  now  rapidly  advancing  inter-mountain  states.  If  I  am 
to  judge  the  future  by  the  past,  this  region  of  which  I  now  speak 
still  appeals  to  me  as  a  land  of  promise.  I  have  seen  it  made  what 
it  now  is  largely  by  individual  effort,  and  without  government  aid. 
As  the  years  have  gone  by  I  have  observed  the  Western  spirit 
everywhere  in  the  development  of  its  latent  resources  until  it  has 
secured,  in  a  measure,  that  recognition  the  inter-mountain  states 
so  richly  deserve.  We  of  the  West  have  made,  under  very  adverse 
circumstances,  a  region  now  of  great  wealth.  Not  only  that,  but 
unaided  as  we  were,  we  have  contributed  immeasurably  to  the 
wealth  of  all  sections  of  our  great  country.  Mindful  of  the  hard- 
ships, struggles  and  experiences  of  years  that  have  gone  before  and 
being  hopeful  of  the  future,  I  trust  I  may  be  pardoned  if  I  express 
at  this  time  and  impress  upon  you,  some  of  my  personal  views  and 
experiences  concerning  governmental  policy  toward  the  undeveloped 
resources  of  the  inter-mountain  states.  I  desire  to  speak  briefly 
of  the  so-called  Government  conservation  policy.  Personally,  I 
have  felt  the  effects  of  conservation. 

Some  years  ago,  over  on  White  River  in  our  state,  on  what 
is  known  as  the  Gilsonite  veins,  several  hundred  mining  locations 
had  been  made  by  mining  men  and  American  citizens  in  good  faith, 
under  the  mining  laws.  That  these  locations  were  valuable  is  beyond 
question,  and  that  they  were  situated  on  the  public  domain  seemed 


160         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

to  prompt  some  of  the  officers  of  the  National  Government  that  the 
government  ought  to  adopt  some  means  of  conservation  and  to 
refuse  to  part  with  government  title  until  the  government  received 
directly  some  benefits  thereby.  Personally  I  was  the  owner  of  about 
forty  of  these  claims,  on  which,  for  five  or  six  years,  I  had  per- 
formed the  annual  assessment  labor  as  required  under  the  mining 
laws. 

In  the  immediate  vicinity  of  these  claims,  a  St.  Louis  Gilsonitc 
Company,  a  corporation,  was  operating  similar  mines  and  had  a 
monopoly  of  the  gilsonite  product  and  thereby  was  acquiring  great 
wealth.  Individuals  were  not  permitted  to  patent  their  claims.  The 
government  in  its  conservation  plan  proposed  leasing,  and  leasing 
at  that  time  meant  leasing  to  this  St.  Louis  Gilsonite  Company. 
Thanks,  however,  to  certain  senators  and  especially  to  the  Hon. 
Jos.  L.  Rawlins,  then  senator  from  Utah,  and  a  power  in  the  Senate 
of  the  United  States,  by  whom  it  was  seen  that  conservation  along 
leasing  lines  of  the  public  domain  was  not  a  true  governmental 
policy.  During  these  years  myself  and  others  were  doing  all  in  our 
power  to  comply  with  the  mining  law  and  to  secure  title  to  our 
locations,  but  it  seemed  to  us  a  hopeless  task.  We  were  finally 
assured  on  every  hand,  so  far  as  the  government  officials  were  con- 
cerned, that  we  would  never  be  able  to  do  so ;  in  fact  we  received 
that  assurance  not  only  from  public  officials  but  from  this  St.  Louis 
Gilsonite  Company  as  well.  Discouraged  and  impoverished  as  some 
were  in  seeking  to  comply  with  the  law  by  doing  the  work  upon 
these  claims,  the  claim  owners,  one  by  one,  sold  their  interests,  and 
I  did  so  too,  to  a  too  well  recognized  American  institution,  a  private 
corporation. 

Now  the  sequel  of  this  brief  story  is  the  thing  to  which  1 
especially  desire  to  call  attention.  Scarcely  six  months  had  passed 
by,  after  the  passing  of  the  rights  of  the  individual  mine  claimants, 
to  this  corporation,  when  the  patriotic  law  makers  of  the  Congress 
of  the  United  States  saw  the  light  and  reached  the  conclusion  that 
those  Gilsonite  claims  were  entitled  to  patent,  and  proceeded  to 
enact  such  legislation  as  would  provide  an  open  way  for  the  Gil- 
sonite Company  to  acquire  those  deposits  of  mineral,  the  value  of 
which  was  at  least  millions,  and  which  under  the  conservation 
idea,  had  been  so  strenuously  denied  the  individual  citizen. 

Then  again  in  my  own  state  when  I  stop  to  consider  the  vast 
areas  of  coal  lands,  undeveloped,  untouched ;  and  when  I  consider 
how  the  railroads  and  big  combines  have  already  secured  sufficient 
coal  deposits  to  enable  them  to  operate  without  stint  for  fifty  or  a 


CONSERVATION     AXD     THE     PEOPLE  161 

hundred  years ;  and  when  I  stop  to  consider  the  present  prices  that 
are  being  charged  the  people  for  that  product ;  and  when  I  stop  to 
consider  that  the  conservation  plan  of  the  National  government  is 
to  withdraw  from  the  market  coal  lands  that  have  not  already  been 
acquired,  I  cannot  help  but  feel  that  the  effect  of  such  a  policy 
means  the  monopoly  of  the  coal  industry  by  the  present  railroads 
and  combines  and  the  prevention  of  competition  on  the  part  of  the 
individual  citizen  therewith;  and  that  conservation  along. these  lines 
means  the  enslavement  of  the  Western  people  and  the  retardment 
of  growth  of  the  whole  inter-mountain  region. 

Then  again  the  conservation  idea  as  a  governmental  policy  is 
being  directed  to  the  possibilities  for  the  development  of  power 
and  light  that  may  be  generated  by  the  utilization  of  the  waters 
of  the  public  domain.  This  governmental  plan  of  withdrawing 
these  rights  so  that  they  may  not  be  acquired  by  individuals,  and  of 
leasing  them,  appeals  to  me  as  being  wholly  in  the  interests  of  those 
favored  corporations  that  have  already  acquired  the  best  and  most 
favorably  situated  power  sites  that  are  to  be  had,  and  that  the  in- 
dividual citizen  if  he  is  to  compete  with  these  companies  and  de- 
velop these  resources  must  enter  this  field  not  only  under  the  dis- 
advantages that  now  obtain,  but  that  he  cannot  secure  any  perma- 
nent rights  and  must  submit  to  becoming  a  tenant  under  limitations 
that  would  render  his  investments  hazardous.  Not  only  must  he 
pay  to  the  government  a  rental  in  an  amount  that  in  my  judgment 
would  insure  failure  on  the  part  of  his  undertaking  in  order  to  be- 
come a  competitor  to  the  already  too  favored  monopolies  operating 
in  this  field,  but  he  must  spend  his  capital  on  the  less  favored,  least 
desired  and  more  expensive  projects.  If  a  policy  such  as  this  means 
conservation,  then  it  means  that  the  waters  of  the  public  domain 
must  continue  to  waste  until  such  a  time  as  they  may  be  utilized 
by  those  who  are  to  be  accorded  the  superior  advantage  of  a  posi- 
tion calculated  to  ruin  every  public-spirited  individual  who  may 
enter  the  field  against  them  or  any  competitor  who  will  be  so  ven- 
turesome as  to  place  his  money  against  them  under  these  adverse 
conditions.  Why  conserve  the  waters  of  the  public  domain  that 
can  be  utilized  for  the  development  of  power,  heat  and  light?  If 
the  government  wishes  to  conserve,  it  should  be  borne  in  mind  that 
running  water,  unless  utilized,  is  waste;  if  utilized,  it  produces 
power,  heat  and  light,  thereby  conserving  coal  and  the  oil  of  the 
earth  from  consumption  and  preserving  them  for  the  generations 
to  come. 


162         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

Personally,  I  desire  to  see  the  vast  resources  of  the  West  de- 
veloped along  lines  that  will  render  its  fields  of  operations  competi- 
tive, that  will  not  require  contribution  on  the  part  of  the  people 
to  a  favored  few;  on  lines  that  will  enable  the  West  to  thrive  and 
grow  in  accordance  with  true  Western  spirit  and  enterprise ;  and  on 
lines  that  no  one  shall  be  thwarted  by  special  legislation  calculated 
to  subject  him  to  inequality  in  the  grand  march  for  future  advance- 
ment. Personally  I  know  of  streams  of  water  in  the  high  mountains 
that  are  either  under  the  reservation  act  or  taken  off  the  market 
entirely  where  it  is  almost  impossible  for  coal  to  be  hauled. 

It  seems  to  be  in  cases  of  this  kind  it  is  absurd  to  say  they 
shall  not  be  used. 

We  would  even  make  reservoirs  above  these  little  plants  that 
would  hold  back  waste  waters  and  bring  more  land  into  cultivation. 

All  these  steep  mountain  streams  in  the  West  can  be  used  for 
power  and  drop  back  into  their  natural  course  without  being  a 
hindrance  to  irrigation  in  any  sense.  In  other  words,  the  reservoirs 
that  would  be  built  to  protect  these  plants  in  times  of  low  water 
would  of  necessity  help  the  lands  that  have  no  water  in  time  of  need. 

Our  forefathers  fought  to  avoid  being  leasers.  They  believed 
in  the  principle  of  individual  ownership  and  rights.  They  believed 
in  the  principle  of  equality  and  bled  and  died  for  it.  Let  us  keep 
and  preserve  our  inheritance  so  costly  acquired,  and  preserve,  if 
we  can,  that  individual  independence  along  commercial  lines  that 
will  not  mean  government  conservation  for  the  favored  few. 


Mining  As  An  Investment. 

BY  JOHN  HAYS  HAMMOND, 
NEW  YORK  CITY. 


The  recommendation  made  by  President  Taft  and  Secretary 
Fisher  with  reference  to  the  leasing  by  the  Federal  Government  of 
the  coal  lands  within  the  public  domain,  especially  the  Alaskan  coal 
deposits,  will,  I  am  sure,  meet  with  the  hearty  approval  of  the 
American  Mining  Congress.  I  speak  confidently  as  to  this  because 
of  the  fact  that  in  1905  I  was  one  of  a  committee  appointed  by 
President  Roosevelt  to  suggest  revisions  in  our  Federal  mining 
law.  We  gave  considerable  study  to  coal  mining,  and  unanimous- 
ly recommended  in  our  report  that  in  the  future  the  government 
should  not  sell,  but  should  lease,  its  coal  deposits.  But  unfortu- 
nately, for  some  one  of  the  many  inscrutable  reasons  responsible 
for  the  materialization  of  recommendations  of  this  kind,  no  definite 
action  was  taken  by  the  authorities  in  Washington  to  whom  our 
report  was  submitted. 

Our  lamented  friend  Mark  Twain  once  described  a  mine  as 
"a  hole  in  the  ground  owned  by  a  liar."  I  strongly  suspect  that  he 
was  influenced  in  thus  stigmatizing  a  mine  by  having  dropped  money 
into  some  "hole  in  the  ground"  during  his  tenderfoot  days  in  Ne- 
vada. Unfortunately  this  definition  has  gained  wide  currency  and 
tias  been  accepted  by  way  -of  consolation  by  those  who  have  had 
similar  unfortunate  experiences  in  their  mining  investments. 

Now,  I  have  always  resented  this  imputation  against  the  in- 
tegrity of  the  honest  miner,  but  in  a  spirit  of  compromise  have  been 
willing  to  accept  the  amended  definition  of  a  mine  as  "a  h«le  in 
the  ground  owned  by  an  optimist."  The  miner  is  by  nature  an 
optimist.  It  is  that  optimism — the  hope  that  springs  eternal  in  the 
miner's  breast — which  has  inspired  him  with  that  indefatigable  en- 
ergy and  indomitable  pluck  that  has  made  the  miner  the  pioneer  of 
civilization,  and  I  submit  to  you  gentlemen  that  such  characteris- 
tics are  incompatible  with  anything  but  honesty  of  purpose. 

Take  the  case  of  old  Jim  Wardner,  for  whom  the  town  in  the 
famous  Coeur  d'Alene  district  of  Idaho  has  been  named.  Not  even 
his  bitterest  enemy  has  ever  accused  Jim  of  being  a  liar ;  nor  have 
his  most  loyal  friends  ever  denied  that  he  was  an  irrepressible  op- 
timist !  The  career  of  Jim  Wardner,  in  common  with  that  of  many 
old-time  mining-  prospectors,  was  characterized  by  vicissitudes. 


164         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MIXING    CONGRESS 

Jim  was  alternately  a  millionaire  and  a  bankrupt.  At  the  time  of 
which  I  speak  Jim  was  in  the  latter  predicament.  Meeting  a  mutual 
friend  on  the  street  one  day,  he  asked  for  the  loan  of  two  hundred 
dollars  to  enable  him  to  continue  sinking  a  shaft  upon  a  quartz  vein 
he  had  recently  located.  In  return,  Jim  offered  to  give  his  friend 
an  interest  in  the  property,  and  held  out  the  lure  by  telling  him 
that  he  was  on  the  edge  of  a  great  pay  shoot  of  ore  very  similar  to 
one  of  the  famous  ore  bodies  that  Jim,  himself,  had  discovered  in  the 
celebrated  Bunker  Hill  and  Sullivan  mine.  "I  feel  sure,"  said  Jim,  "of 
all  formations,  and  that  I  am  within  three  feet  of  a  million  dol- 
lars." Jim  obtained  the  two  hundred  dollars,  and  his  friend  did 
not  see  anything  of  him  until  several  months  afterwards,  when  he 
accidentally  met  him  on  the  street.  "Well,"  said  he  to  Jim,  "how 
is  the  mine  getting  on  ?"  "Well,"  replied  Jim,  "the  last  time  I  saw 
you  I  told  you  that  I  was  within  three  feet  of  a  million  dollars. 
Now  I  am  sorry  to  say  that  the  result  of  my  work  in  the  shaft 
makes  me  believe  that  I  am  at  least  a  million  feet  from  three 
dollars." 

Reverting  for  a  moment  to  the  subject  of  holes  in  the  ground— 
and  I  myself  have  had  considerable  experience  with  holes  in  the 
ground,  having  dug  many  and  having  myself  fallen  into  some  of 
them — if  the  term  "liar"  is  to  be  regarded  as  inseparable  from  a 
hole  in  the  ground — and  for  my  own  part  I  do  not  think  it  is — I 
would  offer  the  definition  of  a  mine  as  "a  hole  in  the  ground  sold 
to  gullible  investors  by  a  lying  promoter,"  and  that  is  where  I  have 
found  in  my  experience  that  most  of  the  lying  connected  with  min- 
ing comes  in. 

Now,  all  this  is  by  way  of  preface  to  the  consideration  of  min- 
.ing  investments. 

9     Unscrupulous  Promoter  Should  Be  Eliminated. 

While  I  fully  recognize  its  achievements  in  the  past,  and  while 
I  keenly  sympathize  with  its  present  earnest  endeavors,  I  never- 
theless am  of  the  opinion  that  by  far  the  best  service  that  the  Ameri- 
can Mining  Congress  could  render  to  the  mining  industry  and  the 
investing  public  would  be  to  exert  its  powerful  and  far-reaching 
influence  in  behalf  of  honest  mining  finance.  There  is  no  use  trying 
to  blink  facts ;  there  is  more  downright  swindling  in  mining  than 
in  any  other  legitimate  industry,  and  especially  is  this  the  case  in 
boom  times.  Unfortunately  the  losses  in  mining  usualy  fall  upon 
those  who  can  ill  afford  to  sustain  such  losses. 

There  is  not  only  the  opportunity,  as  I  have  said,  but,  in  my 
opinion,  there  is  a  duty  to  be  performed  by  the  American  Mining 


MINING     AS     AN     INVESTMENT  165 

Congress  in  this  connection.  I  believe  that  by  energetic  co-opera- 
tion with  other  organizations  that  have  the  welfare  of  legitimate 
mining  at  heart  the  unscrupulous  promoter  could  be  eliminated  and 
the  public  educated  as  to  the  nature  of  mining  investments.  Indeed, 
this  question  would,  in  itself,  tend  to  the  suppression  of  frauds  in 
mining.  Drastic  legislation  is  required  in  connection  with  the 
flotation  of  mining  companies — and,  indeed,  this  applies  to  many 
other  industrial  companies — to  compel  them  to  publish  before  the 
flotation  of  the  companies  reports  of  reputable  engineers — to  state 
the  price  at  which  the  properties  were  acquired  by  the  vendors, 
the  amount  of  the  promoter's  commission,  etc.  This  is  the  English 
law,  and  it  works  well  there.  Furthermore,  mining  companies, 
after  they  have  been  floated,  should  be  compelled  by  law  to  issue 
full  monthly  and  annual  reports  as  to  the  financial  status  of  the 
company,  the  ore  reserves,  the  condition  of  the  lowest  development 
in  the  mine,  etc.,  etc.  If  the  pure  food  and  drug  act  could  be  ap- 
plied to  mining,  so  that  the  investor  would  be  able  to  ascertain  the 
ingredients  of  a  mine,  much  poisonous  stock  would  be  withdrawn 
from  sale,  and  honest  enterprises  would  find  more  money  for  their 
development. 

"Ten  Commandments "  for  Investor. 

First  of  all,  the  subject  of  mining  investments  should  be  given 
authoritative  and  wide  publicity,  and  the  following  essential  facts 
impressed  upon  the  public : 

First,  that  a  mining  investment  should  not  be  made  by  anyone 
to  whom  the  loss  of  the  investment  would  involve  serious  financial 
distress.  Second,  that  there  is  an  important  distinction  between 
investments  in  mining-  prospects  (which  are  of  a  highly  speculative 
character)  and  investments  in  well-developed  mines.  Third,  that 
an  investment  in  a  mine  differs  from  other  investments  in  one 
vitally  important  particular — that  is,  the  life  of  a  mining  investment 
is  relatively  a  short  one,  and,  therefore,  the  higher  rate  of  dividends 
paid  does  not,  in  itself,  justify  the  investment. 

To  this  general  admonition  I  would  subjoin  the  following 
mining  "Ten  Commandments,"  under  a  caption  "Dont's." 

First,  don't  invest  your  money  in  a  mining  property  solely 
because  a  friend  of  yours — even  if  he  be  a  blood  relation — became 
rich  through  some  fortunate  investment  in  mining1  stock. 

Second,  don't,  on  the  other  hand,  be  deterred  from  investing 
in  a  mining  property  because  another  less  fortunate  friend  became 
bankrupt  through  some  other  mining  investment. 

Third,  don't  allow  any  insinuating — not  to  employ  the  shorter 
and  uglier  term — promoter  or  mining  stock  broker  to  make  you 


166         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING  .CONGRESS 

forsake  your  natural  modesty  and  convince  you  that  because  of 
your  success,  in  your  own  line  of  business  you  are  yourself  com- 
petent to  determine  the  value  of  a  mine.  Many  men  of  business 
ability  in  their  own  lines  have  made  trips  of  self-deception  to  see 
for  themselves  the  valuable  investments  offered  them.  Motto : 
"Shoemaker,  stick  to  your  last." 

Beivare  Rich  Specimens. 

Fourth',  don't  be  influenced  in  your  desire  to  purchase  mining 
stock  by  the  "rich  specimens"  that  the  mines  have  produced,  even 
though  you  yourself  have  seen  such  "specimens"  in  the  mine. 
"Specimen  rock"  of  this  kind  is  no  criterion  of  the  average  grade 
of  ore  upon  which  the  success  of  the  mine  depends.  A  well-known 
mining  capitalist  of  a  former  day  was  shown  some  very  rich  speci- 
mens of  ore  from  a  certain  mining  property  and  asked  his  opinion 
as  to  the  value  of  the  property.  His  reply  was:  "You  might  as 
well  show  me  the  hair  from  the  tail  of  a  horse  and  ask  me  how  fast 
that  horse  can  trot." 

Fifth,  don't  buy  stock  in  a  mine  because  it  has  produced  a 
profit  of  millions  of  dollars  in  the  past,  for  obviously  the  mine  is  so 
much  the  poorer  for  the  millions  already  extracted. 

Sixth,  don't  purchase  stock  in  a  mine  because  it  is  in  a  far-off 
country,  even  though  "distance  lends  enchantment  to  the  view." 
As  a  matter  of  fact,  remoteness  and  inaccessibility  of  a  mine  should 
rather  make  one  hesitate  to  invest. 

Seventh,  don't  buy  stock  in  a  mining  company  solely  because 
it  adjoins  another  mine  of  great  value.  This  may  be  interesting 
but  it  is  by  no  means  conclusive  as  to  the  value  of  the  mine  in 
question. 

Eighth,  above  all,  don't  buy  stock  in  a  mine  unless  you  have  the 
unqualifiedly  favorable  report  made  by  a  mining  engineer  of  in- 
tegrity, ability  and  experience,  and  one  who  has  made  a  success  in 
the  investment  of  money  for  his  clients.  An  engineer  may  have  the 
best  obtainable  technical  training,  supplemented  by  considerable 
practical  experience,  and  yet  lack  certain  qualifications  in  his  pro- 
fessional constitution  that  determine  success  or  failure. 

Ninth,  don't  buy  stock  in  a  mine  unless  you  are  sure  that  the 
board  of  directors  are  honest  and  competent— because  honest  and 
capable  management  is  just  as  essential  to  success  in  mining  as  it 
is  in  other  enterprises. 

Tenth,  in  short,  don't  abandon  all  your  good  common  sense 
just  because  the  investment  happens  to  be  one  in  mining  and  not  in 
some  other  class  of  industrial  securities. 


MIXING     AS     AN     INVESTMENT  167 

Now,  these  remarks  are  made  in  no  pessimistic  spirit,  for  there 
is  no  keener  optimist  within  the  bounds  of  reason  than  I  myself  as 
to  the  profitableness  of  mining  investments.  The  suggestions  I 
have  made  are  for  the  protection  of  the  honest  investor  and  in  the 
interest  of  honest  mining. 

While  in  these  remarks  I  have  held  out  to  you  the  red  flag  of 
danger,  nevertheless,  when  the  track  is  clear  and  in  good  condition, 
I  have  great  faith  in  the  safety  of  mining  investments.  And  speak- 
ing with  a  proper  appreciation  of  the  importance  of  this  statement, 
I  have  no  hesitancy  in  expressing  the  opinion  that,  conducted  upon 
the  right  basis,  and  when  extended  over  many  operations,  there  is 
no  business  more  attractive  and  more  safe  than  that  of  mining. 


Importance  of  the  Malm  Process  in  the  Metallurgy  of  Complex 

Ores. 


BY    A.    G.    BROWNLEE, 
IDAHO  SPRINGS,   COLORADO. 


Before  the  practical  application  of  cyanide  of  potassium  (K. 
C.  N.)  to  the  recovery  of  gold  from  its  ores,  profitable  operation 
in  the  gold  mining  industry  was  confined  to  the  treatment  of  such 
ores  as  were  rich  enough  to  stand  the  abuse  and  waste  then  preva- 
lent under  less  efficient  methods  of  extraction.  The  truth  of  the  fore- 
going statement  is  sufficiently  well  established  to  not  require  repe- 
tition of  technical  details  that  are  now  well  understood.  However, 
the  radical  and  welcome  change  in  the  profit  producing  capabilities 
of  the  gold  mining  industry,  brought  about  through  the  discovery  of 
the  cyanide  method,  had  proved  of  such  economic  importance  that 
a  brief  review  of  its  history  may  be  repeated  with  profit : 

Over  two  hundred  years  ago  (1704)  the  chance  manipulation 
of  impure  chemicals  resulted  in  the  formation  of  the  first  cyanogen 
compound  known  as  "Prussian  Blue."  The  accidental  discovery 
was  made  by  Diesbach,  a  color  manufacturer  of  Berlin,  who  never 
understood  or  realized  the  importance  such  a  discovery  would  lead 
to  in  the  science  of  metallurgy.  Diesbach's  interests  were  centered 
in  the  dye  industry. 

Without  entering  into  details  of  subsequent  discoveries  and 
new  knowledge  acquired,  the  foundation  of  which  was  the  chance 
manipulation  mentioned,  it  may  be  stated  that  it  was  not  until 
seventy-eight  years  later  that  Scheele  determined  the  composition 
of  the  compound,  and  succeeded  in  obtaining  an  acid  from  it  which 
he  named  "Prussic  Acid,"  a  virulent  poison. 

That  gold  was  soluable  in  potassic  cyanide  was  known  to 
Hagen  as  early  as  1806,  and  in  1844  Eisner  stated  that  gold  and 
silver  could  be  dissolved  in  potassium  cyanide  without  decomposi- 
tion of  water,  and  also  that  the  dissolution  of  the  metals  was  in 
consequence  of  the  action  of  oxygen,  which,  absorbed  from  the  air, 
decomposed  part  of  the  cyanide,  thus  forming  a  double  salt-auro- 
potassic  cyanide,  which  is  recognized  and  known  as  "Eisner's 
Equation,"  as  follows : 

2Au  +  4Kcy  +  O  +  H2O  =  2AuKcy2  +  2KOH. 

Four  years  before  Eisner's  valuable  contribution  to  the  subject, 
Elkington  proclaimed  that  K  C  N,./>/iw  electricity,  would  dissolve 


THE     MALM     PROCESS  169 

gold  and  three  years  later  (1843)  Prince  Bagration  of  Russia  set 
forth  the  fact  that  K  C  N  alone,  without  electricity,  would  dissolve 
gold.  That  able  scientist  also  contributed  further  valuable  informa- 
tion to  the  subject  which  up  to  that  period  remained  quite  obscure. 
Elkington  probably  macte  the  first  practical  application  of  K  C  N 
as  a  gold  solvent.  He  patented  the  operation  of  electroplating  in 
1840,  the  process  being  the  same  that  is  used  today,  with  but  slight 
modifications. 

For  some  time  after  the  important  work  of  Eisner  in  1844, 
strong  solutions  of  cyanide  were  used,  and  it  remained  for  Dr. 
Henry  Wurtz  to  announce  in  1866  in  the  American  Journal  of 
Science  that  weak  solutions  would  also  dissolve  gold.  This  was  a 
revelation  of  the  first  magnitude  in  economic  metallurgy,  and  Julio 
Rae  of  Syracuse,  N.  Y.,  was  the  first  to  profit  by  the  increased 
knowledge  of  the  subject.  He  applied  for  a  patent  covering  the 
use  of  cyanide  in  ore  treatment  using  agitation  to  hasten  the  action, 
and  the  patent  was  granted  in  1867.  Rae's  process,  however,  was 
never  put  to  commercial  use,  and  the  same  remark  applies  to  in- 
ventions of  others  along  similar  lines  which  followed  in  rapid  suc- 
cession, including  the  more  important  work  of  Simpson  of  Newark, 
X.  J.,  who  obtained  a  patent  in  1865  for  separating  gold  and  silver 
from  their  ores  by  the  use  of  cyanide,  using  an  alkali  to  correct 
acidity,  and  precipitating  on  zinc. 

Simpson's  claims  covered  the  ground  fairly  well,  nevertheless 
they  brought  forth  adverse  criticism  from  rival  scientists  who  ques- 
tioned its  commercial  value  on  account  of  the  high  cost  of  the  salt 
used,  its  instability,  poisonous  nature,  etc.  Notwithstanding  such 
criticism,  the  various  steps  chronicled,  which  are  only  a  few  of  the 
many  that  were  taken  incited  other  chemists  to  further  work  on 
various  cyanite  methods  which  culminated  in  the  English  patents 
granted  MacArthur  and  Forrest  of  Glascow  in  1887,  the  validity 
of  which  were  disputed  except  in  so  far  as  they  applied  to  the  pre- 
cipitation of  gold  from  cyanide  solutions  by  zinc  filaments,  a  strong 
legal  fight  being  made  by  the  inventors  to  establish  the  basic  claim 
of  originality  in  the  use  of  weak  solutions  as  having  a  selective 
action  for  gold  over  the  base  metals  in  the  ore. 

It  is  not  intended  to  extend  these  notes  to  a  discussion  of  the 
worth,  merit  or  validity  of  the  many  patents  that  were  granted  in 
this  and  other  countries,  covering  claims  that  were  made  by  the  sev- 
eral inventors  named,  or  of  important  claims  of  other  inventors  not 
mentioned,  otherwise  this  condensed  review  would  develop  into  a 
book,  the  existing  literature  on  the  subject  of  which  has  already  ex- 


170         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

panded  into  a  fair  sized  library  which  may  be  consulted  in  detail. 
Neither  is  it  thought  wise  to  encumber  this  statement  with  the 
details  of  operation  as  now  practiced  in  perfected  methods  of 
cyanide  treatment  the  development  and  use  of  which  is  directly  or 
indirectly  responsible  for  a  fourfold  increase  in  the  world's  pro- 
duction of  gold  since  the  adoption  of  the  MacArthur  and  Forrest 
methods  less  than  twenty-five  years  ago. 

The-  inventions  for  this  process  have  been  many,  but  the  sub- 
stantial improvements  have  been  few ;  the  process  is  recognized  as 
the  mpst  valuable  advance  in  the  metallurgy  of  precious  metals 
which  the  world  has  known,, due  to  the  basic  principle  of  getting 
gold  into  solution  through  the  agency  of  an  inexpensive  solvent. 
That  is  the  triumph  of  the  art,  for  by  such  means  control  of  opera- 
tion and  high  recovery  of  metal  value  is  obtained,  which  was  there- 
tofore unsatisfactory  if  not  impossible  in  other  processes. 
Development  of  Cyanidation  Process  Gradual. 

The  history  of  the  slow  and  measured  steps  preceding  the  ulti- 
more  development  of  cyanidation,  commencing  with  a  chance  dis- 
covery, and  its  dilatory  adoption  in  the  art  of  metallurgy  should 
lend  encouragement .  to  present  research  work  along  similar  lines 
with  a  view  of  demonstrating  that  like  methods  may  be  made  appli- 
cable to  the  base  as  well  as  to  the  precious  metals.  It  is  something 
important  to  know  that  a  fundamental  basic  arid  economic  principle 
has  been  discovered  even  if  the  details  of  manipulation  remain  to 
be  supplied  in  extending  its  usefulness,  for  any  process  that  is 
sound  in  theory  ought  to  successfully  be  put  into  practical  use,  and 
the  history  recited  of  the  cyanide  process,  which  was  first  skep- 
tically received,  then  ridiculed  beyond  reason,  investigated  grudg- 
ingly, but  finally  adopted  and  successfully  operated,  should  teach 
a  lesson  that  should  not  be  forgotten  in  the  future  consideration  of 
other  methods  that  have  for  their  object  the  brushing  away  of  the 
cobwebs  of  metallurgical  ignorance  and  prejudice  which  too  often 
dominate  selfish  efforts  in  last  endeavors  to  bolster  up  and  retain 
antiquated  methods  that  have  been  faithfully  tried  and  found 
wanting. 

Years  of  experience  and  a  plentiful  supply  of  hard  knocks  have 
taught  the  practical  mine  operator  that  it  needs  no  Sherlock  Holmes 
to  point  to  the  fact  that  the  great  problem  still  confronting  the 
precious  metal  mining  industry  is  not  connected  with  our  economic 
systems  of  mining  but  with  wasteful  metallurgy,  particularly  in  the 
successful  handling  of  our  almost  unlimited  supply  of  complex  or 
so-called  repractory  ores.  The  situation  cries  aloud  for  improved 


THE     MALM     PROCESS  171 

methods  that  will  prevent  further  dissipation  of  such  natural  re- 
sources, and  if  the  new  lUireau  of  Mines  at  Washington  wishes  to 
add  to  its  glory  in  the  more  important  work  of  the  conservation  of 
human  life,  let  it  next  direct  its  attention  and  efforts  to  the  conserva- 
tion of  that  material  so  flagrantly  wasted  in  futile  attempts  to  save 
adequate  values  from  the  complex  sulphide  ores  of  commerce,  the 
present  treatment  of  which  is  distinguished  by  abuse  and  waste 
that  should  be  arrested  without  delay: 

In  the  State  of  Colorado  along  such  methods  of  practice  have 
been  used  so  long  that  all  the  ores  that  were  rich  enough  to  stand 
the  abuse  or  which  were  peculiarly  amenable  to  the  methods  in 
vogue,  are  nearly  exhausted,  and  a  sentimental  cry  has  gone  forth 
for  the  discovery  of  new  mines,  the  product  of  which  will  be  rich 
enough  to  insure  a  continuation  of  the  bad  practice.  And  this,  too, 
in  spite  of  the  fact  that  in  nearly  all  the  old  established  camps 
throughout  the  state  there  are  almost  unlimited  supplies  of  ore 
already  at  hand,  developed,  exposed  and  ready  for  handling,  but 
which  are  jiot  amenable  to  treatment  by  those  methods  which  are 
designed  for  the  extraction  of  easy  money  without  regard  for  the 
rights  of  the  producer  or  the  conservation  of  product. 

The  intrinsic  worth  of  the  ores  referred  to  are  as  great  or 
greater  in  aggregate  metal  values  than  was  contained  in  the  simple 
ores  which  have  been  exhausted  requiring  only  a  favorable  method 
of  treatment  to  make  them  available  and  profitable,  therefore,  it  is 
quite  plain  to  see  that  it  is  not  more  mines  but  improved  metallurgi- 
cal methods  that  are  required  to  restore  prosperity  and  activity  to 
our  languishing  industry. 

The  foregoing  recital  and  remarks  may  appear  somewhat  im- 
prudent in  view  of  the  ultimate  success  of  cyanide  methods  as  at 
present  established,  but,  unfortunately,  all  the  skeptics  are  not 
silenced.  A  number  remain  who  will  proclaim  that  they  can  see  no 
opportunity  to  extend  the  use  of  the  principles  referred  to.  With 
such  men  the  value  of  a  basic  principle  is  not  understood,  or  their 
judgment  is  warped  and  distorted  by  reason  of  personal  interests 
in  antiquated  methods  which  they  are  fearful  may  be  disturbed  by 
new  knowledge,  hence  their  activity  in  trying  to  preserve  the  dark 
ages  of  metallurgical  mis  practice.  . 

Ores  Brought  to  Surface  in  Solution. 

It  is  generally  believed  that  nature  brought  the  bulk  of  our 
ores  to  the  crevices  in  the  earth's  crust,  contained  in  solutions  or 
vapors  from  which  they  were  precipitated  by  reason  of  changing 
temperature,  influenced  by  local  conditions  and  surroundings.  How- 


172         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN     MIXING    CONGRESS 

ever  that  may  be,  the  basic  principle  of  getting  metals  back  into 
the  condition  (solution)  from  which  they  originated,  may  or  may 
not  have  a  vital  bearing  in  the  success  of  subsequently  recovering 
them  in  metallic  form,  nevertheless,  going  back  to  nature's  method 
as  against  the  artificial  methods  of  man,  however  inventive  they 
may  be,  is  a  phase-  of  the  situation  that  is  worthy  of  serious  con- 
sideration. 

The  vital  question,  however,  is:  Will  the  problem  be  solved 
of  saving  the  values  in  our  complex  ores  as  effectively  as  it  has 
been  solved  in  cyaniding  the  so-called  straight  gold  ores? 

The  answer  is :  Yes,  it  will  be  for  the  true  scientific  and  tech- 
nical world  has  always  responded  to  the  demands  of  industrial 
economy,  and  there  is  little  doubt  that  in  spite  of  the  skeptics  there 
is  enough  serious  talent  at  work  to  arrive  at  satisfactory  conclusions. 

Cyanide  lixiviation  has  but  one  competitor,  chlorination,  but 
both  processes  are  not  always  adapted  to  the  same  ores,  so  that  in 
many  cases  they  have  distinctive  fields  for  exploiting.  The  history 
of  the  present  status  of  chlorination,  and  of  the  numerous  steps 
leading  up  to  its  present  high  development,  is  not  unlike  the  history 
of  cyanidation  up  to  the  time  when  the  canny  Scotch  chemists  ap- 
plied it  to  practical  use  in  ore  reduction  in  spite  of  the  adverse 
criticisms  that  were  directed  against  it. 

As  early  as  1848,  sixty-three  years  ago,  Prof.  C.  F.  Plattner 
demonstrated  the  use  of  chlorine  as  an  active  agent  for  the  extrac- 
tion of  gold  from  its  ores.  Plattner's  method  involved  dead  roast- 
ing of  the  ores  in  a  reverberatory  furnace,  then  slightly  moistened 
with  water  and  charged  into  vats.  Chlorine  gas  generated  into 
another  vessel  was  introduced  at  the  bottom  of  the  vat  and  allowed 
to  permeate  the  ore,  converting  the  gold  into  its  soluable  chlorides 
which  were  dissolved  in  water  and  precipitated  by  ferrous  sulphate 
or  other  suitable  reagents. 

This  was  practically  the  first  "Chlorination  Process"  and  its 
importance  incited  other  metallurgists  to  further  research. 

The  use  of  chlorine  in  one  form  or  another  continued  to  be 
exploited  and  has  been  the  means  of  adding  many  millions  of  dol- 
lars to  the  world's  store  of  wealth,  chiefly  through  its  use  in  chlor- 
idizing  roasting  for  pan-amalgamation  and  hyposulphite  lixiviation, 
and  in  the  vat  and  barrel  chlorination  processes,  but  until  quite 
recently  its  application  has  been  directed  and  confined  to  the  recovery 
of  gold  -without  due  regard  to  the  recovery  of  the  base  metals  which 
usually  accompany  it,  the  value  of  the  base  metals  in  many  cases 
exceeding  the  worth  of  the  recovered  gold.  However,  in  spite  of 


THE     MALM     PROCESS  173 

the  fact  that  it  has  long-  been  known  that  chlorine  will  break  up  all 
the  metallic  sulphides  in  a  complex  ore,  it  has  never  been  used  com- 
mercially for  that  purpose  until  quite  recently,  and  even  now  only 
in  a  limited  way,  chiefly  by  foreign  metallurgists.  Such  disuse  is 
not  due  to  want  of  efficiency  in  the  agent,  but  to  the  lack  of  prac- 
tical methods  of  manipulation  in  what  has  heretofore  been  regarded 
as  a  difficult  operation. 

Contributors  to   ll'ork. 

In  a  communication  of  this  character  space  will  not  admit  of 
a  detailed  account  of  the  many  important  steps  that  were  taken  in 
experimental  work  with  chlorine.  Its  history  is  almost  parallel  with 
that  of  cyanide,  besides,  in  view  of  the  rejection  of  many  discoveries 
which  proved  to  be  commercially  worthless^  but  which,  neverthe- 
less, proved  of  scientific  value  in  the  process  of  elimination,  even 
a  passing  notice  of  such  work  must  be  confined  to  the  names  of  but 
a  few  of  the  principal  contributors  to  the  subject  and  the  approx- 
imate dates  of  their  operations,  as  follows : 

1848,  Prof.  C.  F.  Plattner. 

1849,  Dr.  Dufles. 
1857,  C.  F.  Deetkin. 

1868,  Henry  Tindall. 

1869,  Henry  F.  Eames. 

1872,  Milton  H.  Stowe. 

1873,  Joseph  Kallmes. 
1879,  Ottokar  Hofmann. 

About  this  time  the  Mears  barrel  process  was  introduced,  fol- 
lowed by  several  others  such  as  the  Newberry-Vautin,  Pollock, 
Boynton,  et  al.,  involving  the  use  of  chlorine  in  both  the  liquid  and 
gaseous  state,  generated  inside  or  outside  of  the  barrel  and  used 
in  connection  with  a  vacuum  or  under  heavy  pressure. 

1888,  Adolph  Thies. 

1896,  Alf.  Sinding-Larsen. 

1902,  Swinburn  and  Ashcroft. 

1903,  Maxwell  and  Sawyer,  Baker  and  Burwell. 

1906,  William  Koehler. 

1907,  Diehl  and  Koehler. 
1003  to  1907,  John  L.  Malm. 

The  importance  of  the  work  of  the  several  metallurgists  men- 
tioned is  difficult  to  determine,  for  even  those  who  made  failures 
left  warning  signs  in  the  pathway  of  those  who  followed.  Thus 
later  investigators  profited  by  example,  and  avoided  pitfalls  into 
which  they  too  might  have  stumbled. 


174         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

The  field  of  metallurgical  research  is  strewn  with  failures,  yet 
it  is  largely  due  to  the  experience  and  knowledge  acquired  in  such 
failures  that  successes  have  been  evolved.  Such  failures  are  usually 
charged  to  the  "mistakes  of  science,"  but  be  it  said  to  the  credit  of 
the  true  scientist  that  while  he  makes  failures,  he  is  the  first  to  dis- 
cover and  correct  them,  and  even  the  mistakes  are  turned  to  profit- 
able account  in  the  process  of  elimination  for  after  all  a  successful 
invention  is  a  growth  not  a  creation. 

Therefore,  while  we  impatiently  listen  to  the  criticisms  of  the 
skeptic  who  claims  that  any  process  which  promises  to  recover  all 
the  metals  is  entirely  too  revolutionary  in  character  to  merit  serious 
consideration,  he  must  be  shown  that  the  wonderful  advance  in  the 
art  is  not  revolutionary  but  evolutionary,  and  that  he  can  no  longer 
hide  behind  the  illogical  argument  that  "It  is  too  good  to  be  true." 
The  Malm  Process. 

The  ore  is  crushed  to  about  ten  mesh,  is  properly  dried  and 
fed  to  a  revolving  tube  mill,  where  it  is  subjected  to  the  action  of 
chlorine  gas.  The  ore  is  fed  continuously  into  one  end  of  the  tube 
mill  and  is  discharged  at  the  other  end.  The  chlorine  gas  is  ad- 
mitted by  an  ingenious  device  without  loss  to  the  tube  at  the  ore 
discharge  end.  The  ore  is  kept  in  contact  with  the  gas  long  enough 
to  chloridize  only  from  40  to  70  per  cent  of  the  metal  contents. 
By  a  proper  regulation  of  the  ore  and  gas  supplies  and  the 
admission  of  air  the  temperature  due  to  chemical  reaction  can  be 
controlled  and  adjusted.  After  this  partial  chloridization  in  the 
tube  mill,  the  ore  is  conveyed  by  an  automatic  carrier  to  a  roasting 
furnace,  preferably  of  the  multiple  hearth  type.  Here  the  partially 
chloridized  ore  is  subjected  to  the  action  of  the  heat,  which  is  fur- 
nished by  the  burning  sulphur.  The  heat  breaks  up  the  iron 
chlorides  irrespective  of  their  condition  and  liberates  chlorine  free 
or  as  hydrochloric  acid,  thus  leaving  the  iron  in  an  inert  oxide  con- 
dition, thereby  eliminating  the  iron  and  manganese  from  subsequent 
reaction.  The  chlorine  gas  or  hydrochloric  acid  thus  liberated 
unites  with  the  sulphides  of  silver,  copper,  lead  and  zinc,  forming 
chlorides  of  those  metals.  Simple  and  effective  means  are  provided 
to  prevent  escape  of  chlorine  should  the  same  be  in  excess. 

The  ore  so  treated  in  the  furnace  is  passed  to  an  agitator  to 
which  is  added  water  or  mill  solutions.  As  all  the  reactions  in- 
volved in  the  process  are  exothermic,  sufficient  heat  is  generated 
at  this  point  to  make  possible  the  solution  of  such  chlorines  as  lead 
chloride.  Additional  chlorine  may  be  added  at  this  point,  if  nec- 
essary, to  bring  the  gold  into  solution.  From  the  agitator  in  which 


THE     MALM     PROCESS  175 

all  the  metals  go  into  solution  as  chlorides,  the  solution  is  passed 
to  properly  designed  filter  presses  in  which  the  gangue,  which  will 
ordinarily  consist  of  silica,  sulphur  and  the  oxides  of  iron  and  man- 
ganese, is  retained. 

The  solution  containing  the  chlorides  passes  from  the  filter 
presses  and  is  agitated  in  the  presence  of  metallic  copper,  which 
precipitates  the  gold  and  silver,  which  is  parted  by  the  usual  method 
and  cast  into  bars. 

The  solution  from  which  the  gold  and  silver  has  been  removed 
is  decanted  and  agitated  in  the  presence  of  metallic  iron,  which 
precipitates  the  copper. 

The  solution  is  then  agitated  in  the  presence  of  metallic  zinc, 
which  precipitates  the  lead,  and,  if  necessary,  it  is  agitated  in  the 
presence  of  zinc  oxide,  chlorine  gas  and  sulphur  dioxide  to  re- 
move ^ron,  manganese  or  lime,  which  may  have  entered  the  solution 
either  on  account  of  insufficient  decomposition  in  the  roasting  fur- 
nace or  through  the  substitution  method  employed  in  the  precipita- 
tions referred  to. 

The  solution  after  the  above  mentioned  treatment  contains  only 
zinc  chloride  in  solution,  and  when  this  solution  through  successive 
cycles  has  reached  a  sufficient  concentration  of  zinc  chloride,  it  is 
passed  to  vacuum  evaporators  in  which  all  trace  of  moisture  is  re- 
moved, fused  and  run  into  electrolytic  cells.  Here  the  electric  cur- 
rent is  applied,  which  deposits  the  zinc  in  metallic  form  and  lib- 
erates the  chlorine  for  refuse,  the  entire  loss  of  chlorine  in  the 
complete  cycle  of  operation  approximating  about  2  per  cent.  The 
zinc  cells  are  operated  at  a  temperature  of  about  450°  C.,  and  the 
gas  escapes  from  the  cells  at  a  temperature  approximating  the  above 
figure.  This  chlorine  gas  is  passed  under  the  evaporators,  thereby 
supplying  heat  for  the  evaporation,  and  also  partly  cools  the  gas, 
which  is  essential  before  reusing  it  in  the  tube  mill.  The  various 
precipitates  of  gold,  silver,  copper  and  lead  are  separately  collected 
in  filter  presses,  dried,  melted  and  cast  into  bars  ready  for  ship- 
ment. The  molten  metallic  zinc  is  tapped  from  the  electrolytic 
cells  at  regular  intervals  and  run  into  molds. 

Simplicity  Proper  Word  for  Malm  Process. 

The  foregoing  brief  outline  includes  operations  the  successful 
manipulation  of  which  will  doubtlessly  be  challenged  by  the  metal- 
lurgist whose  knowledge  is  limited  to  European  difficulties  and  prac- 
tice. For  the  information  of  such,  it  may  be  stated  that  Mr.  Malm 
does  not  lay  claim  to  originality  or  anything  new  in  the  chemistry 
of  the  process,  but  it  must  be  quite  plain  to  the  student  that  he  has 


176         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN     MINING    CONGRESS 

devised  new  chemical  applications  and  perfected  mechanical  ma- 
nipulation in  a  marked  degree  to  come  within  the  scope  of  sim- 
plicity thus  outlined.  Simplicity  is  the  proper  word  which  described 
the  culmination  of  Mr.  Malm's  laborious  work,  extending  over  a  pe- 
riod of  several  years  in  this  country  and  abroad. 

.Naturally  he  has  been  materially  assisted  by  the  more  recent 
manufacture  of  improved  apparatus  which  has  lately  become  stand- 
ard in  such  chemical  work,  nevertheless  he  was  compelled  to 
"scrap"  many  thousands  of  dollars'  worth  of  apparatus  and  ma- 
chinery before  finding  the  article  suitable  to  continuous  usage.  As 
a  typical  example  of  the  elimination  of  such  difficulties,  it  may  be 
stated  that  in  his  first  experimental  mill,  located  at  Corbin,  Montana, 
much  fragile  and  delicate  earthenware  and  porcelain  apparatus  was 
used,  including  breakable  valves,  stopcocks,  etc.,  used  in  conducting 
or  controlling  chlorine  gas.  In  the  large  commercial  mill  which  Mr. 
Malm  is  now  constructing  for  the  Western  Metals  Company  of 
Denver,  located  near  the  town  of  Georgetown,  Colorado,  all  con- 
duits of  gas  are  safely  and  securely  laid  in  and  below  the  surface 
of  the*  concrete  working  floors,  and  there  is  not  such  a  thing  as  an 
earthenware,  porcelain  or  hard  rubber  valve  or  stopcock  in  the 
entire  plant.  Simple  oil  and  water-locked  switches,  diverted  by 
means  of  "U"  tubes  made  of  lead  and  ordinary  rubber  hose  fitted 
with  wooden  pinchcocks,  solved  such  difficulties  in  an  effective  and 
economical  manner. 

The  foregoing  is  but  a  fair  example  of  one  of  the  several  per- 
fected and  improved  mechanical  methods  that  have  been  devised 
by  Mr.  Malm  to  bring  the  heretofore  complicated  operation  within 
the  range  of  simplicity  and  durability.  There  is  now  no  depart- 
ment of  the  plant,  which  is  very  nearly  completed,  that  cannot  be 
successfully  operated  by  unskilled  labor,  superintended  by  one  com- 
petent manager,  assisted  by  one  skilled  chemist. 

The  change  or  play  between  the  "ic".and  "ous"  chlorides  of 
iron,  manganese  and  copper  are  of  vital  importance  in  the  opera- 
tion, and  Mr.  Malm  has  mastered  a  control  which  not  only  elimi- 
nates many  difficulties  heretofore  encountered,  but  he  has  done  it  in 
such  a  simple  and  effective  manner  that  it  appears  difficult  to  un- 
derstand why  the  discovery  was  not  made  long  ago.  Retrospec- 
tion, after  the  thing  is  done,  is  quite  simple,  but  it  took  patience  and 
skill  to  do  the  real  work.  The  play  referred  to  has  much  to  do  with 
the  clarification  of  complex  solutions  which  have  always  been  a 
bugbear  to  the  metallurgist,  but  the  abnormally  high  recovery  of 
all  the  metals  by  substitution  and  precipitation,  except  zinc,  which 


THE     MALM     PROCESS  177 

is  recovered  electrolytically,  clearly  proves  that  Mr.  Malm  has 
solved  the  problem  in  a  very  effective  manner,  practical  in  its  appli- 
cation. There  are  so  many  important  details  of  manipulation  that 
have  been  simplified  and  made  practical  that  space  forbids  a  tech- 
nical description.  Suffice  it  to  say  that  they  have  been  carefully 
examined  and  passed  upon  by  independent  engineers  and  metal- 
lurgists of  national  reputation  and  sound  judgment,  who  have  pro- 
nounced the  complete  operation  as  the  most  simple  and  economic 
method  that  has  been  devised  in  commercial  metallurgy  since  the 
advent  of  cyanidation,  over  which  chlorination  now  promises  to 
have  a  much  wider  field  of  usefulness. 

Costs. 

From  sixty  to  seventy  per  cent  of  the  cost  of  operating  this 
process  is  for  electric  power,  depending  very  largely  upon  the  metal 
contents  of  the  ore  to  be  treated.  Direct  current  at  relatively  low 
pressure  is  used  for  the  electrolytic  work,  which  applies  to  zinc  only, 
and  the  consumption  of  power  varies  with  the  zinc,  or  zinc  equiva- 
lent, contents  of  the  ore.  In  practice  an  actual  recovery  has  been 
made  of  14.2  to  14.4  pounds  of  zinc  per  horsepower  day,  there- 
fore, with  electric  energy  at  a  cost  of  $50  per  horsepower  year, 
or  sixteen  cents  per  day,  the  cost  of  converting  zinc  chlorides  into 
metallic  bars  of  a  premium  brand  would  amount  to  but  a  small 
fraction  in  excess  of  one  cent  per  pound.  Such  brands  of  electro- 
lytic zinc  are  now  being  manufactured  abroad  under  chlorination 
methods  of  a  more  complicated  character. than  the  Malm  process. 
They  are  exported  and  sold  in  New  York  City  at  as  high  a  pre- 
mium as  two  and  one-half  cents  per  pound  in  excess  of  New  York 
quotations  for  spelter,  which  is  an  impure  produce  of  the  smelters. 

It  is  only  claimed  that  not  less  than  go  per  cent  of  the  values 
of  all  the  metals  may  be  recovered  from  an  ore  by  this  process. 
However,  actual  practice  on  a  tonnage  basis  has  shown  that  a  much 
higher  saving  may  be  made,  and  the  following  example  of  the  re- 
duction of  a  very  difficult  refractory  ore  will  serve  to  illustrate  the 
recoveries  obtainable  : 

CRUDE  ORE.  METAL  EXTRACTION. 

Assay.  Price.  Value.     Per  Cent.  Weight. 

0.18  ozs.  gold  @  $20.00  per  oz.  =  $3.60  90  0.162  oz. 

i:U)7ozs.  silver®       .50  per  oz.  =     6.98  91.6  12.796  ozs. 

4.78%  lead       @       .04  per    Ih.  =    3:82  97.4  93.        lb«?. 

o.(»8%    copper®       .13  per    Ib.  =      1.77  99.3  13.5      Ibs. 

9.00%  zinc       (a)       .05  per    Ib.  =      9.no  94.2  169.5      Ibs. 


Average     $25. 1 7  93.68+  $23.58 


178         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

The  average  cost  of  handling  this  ore  from  mine  to  market, 
including  all  charges,  was  as  follows: 

PER  TON. 

Mining,  development,  tramming  and  general  expense $  4.00 

Entire  cost  of  treatment 5.32 

Royalty    85 

Handling  and  loading  product 05 

Freight    charges 1 .68 

Marketing   charges 1.02 

Miscellaneous    .  .65 


Total $13.57 

The 'average  profit  per  ton  was  $10.01. 

By  present  methods  of  concentration  followed  by  smelting  and 
refining,  the  gross  proceeds  on  this  ore  were  $10.75  Per  ton,  while 
the  total  costs  per  ton  were  $8.8$,  leaving  a  profit  of  but  $1.90,  or 
$8.11  in  favor  of  the  chemical  process,  an  increase  in  profit  of  400 
per  cent. 

The  cost  of  treating  an  ore  of  the  composition  mentioned,  con- 
taining only  one  per  cent  zinc,  would  be  $2.44  per  ton,  increasing 
about  36  cents  for  each  additional  one  per  cent  of  zinc.  However, 
costs  in  this  process  are  not  generally  calculated  per  ton  of  ore 
treated,  which  are  quite  variable,  depending  almost  entirely  upon 
the  metallic  contents  and  composition  of  the  crude  ore.  They  are 
usually  determined  upon  the  number  of  pounds  of  metal  recovered, 
thereby  showing  the  true  economy  of  the  method.  Straight  lead  or 
copper  ores,  without  zinc,  cost  considerably  less. 
Advantages  of  the  Process. 

1.  Applicability  to  about  90  per  cent  of  all  ores. 

2.  Special   applicability   to   ores   heretofore   regarded   as   too 
refractory  and  complex  for  any  known  treatment. 

3.  Elimination  of  ore  dressing  and  mechanical  concentration 
with  their  extravagant  losses. 

4.  Elimination  of  fire  methods  with  their  attending  sulphur 
and  arsenical  fumes,  consequent  litigation  and  high  smelter  charges. 

5.  The    complete   and    economical   passing   into    solution    of 
all  the  metals. 

6.  High  percentage  of  recovery. 

7.  Low  cost  per  pound  of  metal  recovered. 

8.  Comparatively    low    cost    of    installation,    considering   the 
completeness  of  the  process. 

9.  Simplicity  of  operation. 

10.  Products  in  marketable  condition. 

Mr.  Malm's  valuable  work  has  been  carried  along  the  line  of 
true   conservation,   viz:      Utilization   without  waste..     Under    his 


THE     MALM     PROCESS  179 

methods  no  one  metal  is  sacrificed  to  save  another,  but  all  the 
metals  of  commerce  in  the  ore  are  recovered,  including  the  here- 
tofore despised  and  much  penalised  zinc.  The  mechanical  losses 
encountered  in  the  work  are  only  those  which  cannot  be  prevented 
in  any  operation,  however  perfect  it  may  be.  If  it  is  not  perfec- 
tion, it  is  at  least  the  highest  point  that  metallurgical  skill  has 
reached  in  this  field  of  operation,  and  its  ultimate  value  and  im- 
portance is  difficult  to  foresee  or  estimate.  It  promises  to  become 
as  important  a  factor  in  the  extraction  of  all  the  metals  in  complex 
ores  as  the  cyanide  process  has  proved  in  the  treatment  of  straight 
gold  ores. 


Workmen's  Compensation. 

BY   JOHN  H.    JONES, 
PITTSBURGH,   PA. 


In  presenting  the  results  of  the  labors  of  the  special  commitee 
appointed  to  consider,  and  report  upon,  the  subject  of  a  workmen's 
compensation  act,  I  desire  to  call  to  your  attention  some  of  the 
things  which  form  the  basis  of  the  reasoning  of  your  committee, 
and  to  submit  the  same  for  your  approval. 

The  subject  of  employers'  liability  and  workmen's  compensa- 
tion, in  one  form  or  another,  has  agitated  the  minds  of  men  for 
years.  Individuals,  corporations,  states  and  nations  have  studied, 
conferred,  and  sought  solutions.  The  justice  of  it. all  is  generally 
conceded,  and  American  industry  is  still  seeking  the  best  direction 
to  which  to  move  to  accomplish  the  object  of  its  faith. 

The  coal  mining  industry  is  no  stranger  to  either  ''liability1'  or 
"compensation,"  nor  did  it  wait  for  law  to  suggest,  demand,  or 
compel  a  reasonable  care,  in  one  form  or  another,  of  those  injured 
in  the  pursuit  of  the  industry. 

That  the  mining  industry  has  its  many  problems  is  not  only 
known  to  you,  but  is  well  evidenced  by  the  birth,  development,  and 
achievement  of  this  Congress,  and  the  best  testimony  in  evidence  of 
the  value  and  efficiency  of  the  Congress  is  this  present  meeting,  its 
splendid  program,  and  its  large  and  representative  character. 

It  is  natural  then  that  a  subject  of  so  vital  importance  to  the 
industry  should  engage  the  serious  attention  of  the  Mining  Con- 
gress, first  through  a  special  committee,  whose  report  is  in  print, 
and  now  presented  for  your  present  consideration,  discussion,  and 
approval. 

In  order  to  provoke  full  discussion,  the  chairman  of  the  com- 
mittee desires  to  present  this  paper  as  a  brief  supplement  to  the 
printed  report. 

One  of  the  most  important  points  in  the  whole  matter,  upon 
which  this  Congress  should  fully  inform  and  declare  itself,  is  to 
decide  upon  the  best  direction  to  follow  in  working  out  a  solution 
best  adapted  to  the  mining  industry.  On  this  point  we  have  the 
experience  and  opinion  of  practical  men  in  this  and  other  countries. 
It  has  been  stated  that  what  has  been  done  in  England,  and  what 
has  been  done  in  Germany,  are  the  most  important  types  of  action 


WORKMEN'S    COMPENSATION  181 

on  this  subject  which  we  can  study.  Therefore  we  will  call  upon 
some  representative  gentlemen  to  present  their  experience  and 
views;  first,  Mr.  A.  H.  Gill,  Member  of  Parliament,  of  Balton, 
England,  and  Secretary  of  the  Operative  Cotton  Spinners'  Associa- 
tion. Mr.  Gill  says,  in  substance: 

"In  England,  before  the  eighties,  the  common  law  was  the  only 
means  of  adjustment  between  the  injured  and  his  employer;  when 
negligence  of  the  employer  was  not  apparent  or  proven  it  was  hard 
to  get  compensation.  The  work-people  became  dissatisfied  and 
began  to  agitate  for  a  new  law,  and,  as  the  result,  an  employers' 
liability  act  was  passed  in  1880,  and  while  it  was  an  improvement 
on  the  common  law,  the  act  was  not  a  success,  as  it  embodied  the 
doctrine  that  an  employer  should  not  be  liable  unless  negligence 
was  proved,  or  if  the  workman  had  been  guilty  of  contributory 
negligence.  It  has,  always,  been  difficult  to  succeed  in  an  action 
under  the  act  as  so  many  means  could  be  found  of  resisting  a  claim. 
The  result  of  the  failure  to  secure  compensation  caused  a  further 
agitation  for  an  improved  method  of  dealing  with  the  problem. 
This  agitation  bore  fruit  for,  in  the  year  1897,  an  act  was  passed 
known  as  the  workmen's  compensation  act.  This  act  did  away 
with  the  doctrine  of  contributory  negligence  and  made  the  employer 
liable  to  pay  compensation  to  a  workman  who  lost  time  through  any 
accident  which  occurred  while  following  his  employment.  At  first 
it  applied  to  certain  classes  of  workers,  namely,  railway  workers, 
miners,  and  those  engaged  in  occupations  to  which  the  factory  and 
workshop  act  applied.  This  last  mentioned  act  created  many 
anomalies,  this  made  necessary  an  amending  act,  which  was  passed. 
In  the  year  1906  the  present  workmen's  compensation  act  was 
passed  and  it  is  a  great  improvement  on  the  previous  one." 
Twenty-Six  Years  Perfecting  English  Act. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  enlarge  upon  this  act,  but  simply  to  draw 
to  your  attention  and  emphasize  the  fact  that  26  years  of  agitation 
by  workmen,  and  26  years  of  study,  and  experiment,  by  practical 
men,  resulted  in  a  workmen's  compensation  act  that  is  an  im- 
provement over  all  previous  acts.  In  closing  his  remarks  Mr.  Gill 
says:  (in  1909) 

"The  act  is  a  good  one.  It  has  very  largely  salved  a  knotty 
problem.  We  are  not  likely  to  go  back  on  it,  and  I  think  that  you 
would  be  well  advised  in  giving  it  a  careful  study." 

This  opinion  is  fully  confirmed  by  Attorney  Packer,  of  Wash- 
ington, D.  C,  who  was  retained  by  the  United  States  Government 
to  investigate  the  English  Compensation  Act  and  conditions  in  the 
United  States. 


182         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

Another  opinion  dated  Washington,  D.  C,  December  24,  1910: 

"The  Illinois  Legislature  .should  enact  a  liberal  Employers' 
Liability  Act  at  the  special  session  and  then  undertake  an  investiga- 
tion with  a  view  of  the  introduction  of  an  automatic  compensation 
law,  for  THAT  view  observers  now  regard  as  the  most  feasible  and 
just  solution  of  the  vocational  ills,  accidents  and  deaths." 

(Signed)  SAMUEL  GOMPERS, 

President  Am.  Fed.  of  Labor. 

And  another: 

"In  spite  of  the  fact  that  every  one  of  the  industrial  nations  of 
Europe  has  discarded  the  system  of  paying  damages  on  the  ground 
of  the  liability  of  the  employer,  and  has  adopted  in  its  stead  the 
payment  of  compensation  for  industrial  accidents ;  in  spite  of  the 
fact  that  New  York  has  adopted  a  workmen's  compensation  act, 
and  that  both  Wisconsin  and  Minnesota  are  considering  compensa- 
tion as  the  only  feasible  solution  of  this  problem,  the  Chicago  Fed- 
eration of  Labor  and  its  representatives  on  the  Commission  have 
taken  a  decided  stand  that  the  abrogation  of  the  employers'  de- 
fenses must  precede  any  bill  providing  compensation. 

"It  is  evident  from  the  letter  which  the  Federation  submits, 
that  its  officers  are  not  only  unfamiliar  or  unmindful  of  the  eco- 
nomic waste  involved  in  any  employers'  liability  system,  but  that 
they  have  no  knowledge  of  the  total  inadequacy  of  such  a  system, 
even  when  extended  by  such  serious  modification  of  the  employers' 
defenses  as  the  American  Federation  of  Labor  advocates. 

"An  employers'  liability  law  meets  none  of  the  prime  necessi- 
ties of  definite  compensation,  immediately  and  automatically  paid. 
Under  it  every  case  is  a  gamble." 

Signed  by  the  six  "Employer"  members  of  the  commission  of 
twelve,  Illinois  Employers'  Liability  Commission. 

Again,  Major  A.  R.  Piorkowski,  representing  the  Frederick 
Krupp  Company  of  Essen,  Germany,  and  speaking  for  the  German 
system — 

"The  German  accident  insurance  had  its  predecessor  in  the 
Liability  Law  of  1871,  by  which  the  operators  of  industrial  estab- 
lishments were  liable  for  the  accidents  caused  by  them.  The  in- 
jured workmen  had  to  bring  proof  that  the  operator  caused  the 
accident,  and  the  amount  of  compensation  was  determined  by 
private  societies.  It  is  evident,  that  such  an  institution  could  satisfy 
nobody.  The  consequences  were  long  drawn  out,  and  costly  law 
suits,  by  which  the  contrasting  interests  of  employers  and  employe 
were  glaringly  brought  to  light. 


WORKMKN'S    COMPENSATION  183 

The  more  law  suits  between  both  classes,  the  more  hatred  and 
the  less  understanding  there  were  for  what  was  mutual  in  their 
interests.  Employers,  employes,  and  the  Government  looked  eagerly 
for  a  better  solution  of  the  problem.  Germans  have  been  called  a 
people  of  thinkers.  They  thought,  and  understood  why  the  liability 
law  did  not  answer  the  purpose,  did  not  work  for  peace  between 
capital  and  labor.  It  worked  unjustly  toward  both  of  them.  An 
accident  would  not  be  an  accident  if  it  could  be  foreseen,  avoided  or 
prevented.  The  accident  is  an  inevitable  incident  of  the  trade.  It 
is  not  due,  legally  speaking,  to  the  carelessness  of  the  employer. 
Nor  is  it  due,  legally  speaking,  to  the  carelessness  of  the  employe. 
It  just  happens.  It  can  only  be  put  to  the  imperfections  and  perils 
of  the  trade.  Therefore,  the  only  logical  and  just  way  to  com- 
pensate for  the  injuries  done  is  by  insurance. 

First,  they  proposed  compulsory  insurance,  through  an  imperial 
financial  institute,  that  contributors  should  be  employers  and  the 
insured. 

The  Reichstag  refused  this  plan. 

Then  the  central  association  of  German  industries  recom- 
mended the  accident  insurance. 

The  place  of  an  imperial  insurance  was  taken  by  the  trade 
associations  of  the  employers. 

Instead  of  contributions  by  the  employers  and  communities 
came  the  burden  of  the  first  13  weeks  to  be  borne  by  the  sick  funds, 
to  which  the  workmen  had  to  pay  nearly  67  per  cent. 

The  administration  remained  with  the  employers. 

The  arbitration  courts  consisted  of  employers  and  employes 
in  equal  numbers. 

In  1900  this  law  received  its  present  shape,  briefly- 
All  workmen  and  administrative  officers,  the  latter  provided 
their  annual  earnings  do  not  exceed  3,000  marks,  are  insured  against 
the  results  of  accidents  in  the  course  of  their  employment,  if  em- 
ployed in  mines,  factories,  and  similar  establishments  specified  in 
law. 

In  case  of  disability,  compensation  is  rendered  from  the  be- 
ginning of  the  I4th  week  after  the  date  of  the  accident. 

The  injured  person  receives  free  medical  treatment,  medicine 
and  other  means  of  healing. 

The  accident  associations  are  self  administrative.  Their  in- 
ternal administration  is  regulated  by  a  constitution,  enacted  by  the 
general  meeting.  The  law  says  what  the  constitution  is  to  specify. 


184         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

The  constitution  becomes  valid  when  approved  by  the  imperial 
insurance  office. 

The  general  meeting  of  the  association  establishes  the  risk  tariff 
for  the  different  factories,  etc.,  according  to  the  degree  of  accident 
risk,  and  the  amount  of  contribution  accordingly. 

This  tariff  risk  is  to  be  revised  every  five  years  and  approved 
by  the  imperial  insurance  office. 

If  any  gentleman  present  imagines  that  the  German  system 
would  be  a  success  in  this  country,  let  me  quote  from  the  New 
York  Commercial  of  Friday,  October  20,  1911 — (4  days  ago)  — 
under  the  heading — 

"Liability  Men  Criticize  State  Insurance  System." 
After  much  discussion  and  an  attack  upon  the  suggestion  of 
Governor  Woodrow  Wilson,  as  to  state  accident  insurance,  it  reads : 
Nearly  every  speaker  alluded  to  a  recent  review  of  the  Ger- 
man state  insurance  system,  written  by  Dr.   Ferdinand   Friedens- 
burg,  who  has  recently  retired  after  20  years  at  the  head  of  the 
senate  of  the  imperial  insurance  office  of  the  German  E'mpire.  -Dr. 
Friedensburg  does  not  find  the  German  system,  as  it  has  worked  out 
in  practice,  by  any  means  ideal.     He  does  not  condemn  the  prin- 
ciples underlying  the  workmen's  compensation  for  accidents. 

Dr.  Lott  quoted  him  as  saying  that  charity  crept  in  and  cor- 
rupted the  system  at  the  beginning;  that  "workmen  very  soon  got 
accustomed  to  bringing  their  complaints,  doubts  and  claims  of  any 
nature  whatever  to  the  imperial  insurance  office,  often  without  ap- 
pealing to  any  intermediate  instance,"  that  the  imperial  insurance 
office,  which  is  intended  to  handle  questions  of  law,  is  overburdened 
with  frivolous  and  unfounded  claims ;  that  "the  expenses  of  the 
system  continued  to  grow  as  the  force  required  increased"  ;  that 
"the  number  of  officials  in  the  imperial  insurance  office  has  multi- 
plied in  tune  with  the  ever-waxing  burden  of  work" ;  that  "the 
number  of  accidents  grows  with  monstrous  speed"  ;  that  "in  1886 
100,159  accidents  were  reported  and  10,540  (10  per  cent)  compen- 
sated; in  1908,  662,321  accidents  were  reported  and  142.965  (21 
per  cent)  compensated";  that  "often  an  accident  is  sought  for  and 
arranged" ;  that  "sometimes  a  chronically  sick  man  swears  that  his 
old  illness  is  the  result  of  a  recent  accident  and  gets  consequential 
help" ;  that  "the  communal  chiefs  act  entirely  under  the  belief  that 
they  ought  to  help  their  local  residents,  as  a  result  of  the  common 
opinion  that  the  insurance  funds  have  more  money  than  they  know 
what  to  do  with,  and  this  idea  strikingly  deadens  the  conception  of 
legality  and  love  for  the  truth" ;  that  "naturally  the  universal  laxity, 


WORKMKX'S     COMPENSATION  185 

the  payment  of  unjustified  claims,  and  the  extravagance  practiced 
justified  claims,  and  the  extravagance  in  equipping  hospitals  and 
sanitoria  impair  the  integrity  of  insurance  funds"  ;  that  "employers 
do  all  thai  is  possible  to  escape  their  burdens,  which  they  feel  to 
be  unjust  and  in  vain  enormous  sums  are  annually  extracted  from 
them  in  fines,"  that  ''industrial  unions  and  insurance  institutions 
have  been  repeatedly  on  the  brink  of  bankruptcy. 

Dr.  Friedensburg  points  out  that  the  excessive  cost  of  the 
insurance  system,  which  is  one  result  of  the  degradation  of  the 
system  into  charity,  is  complained  of  by  employers,  and  that  state 
insurance,  therefore,  reacts  injuriously  upon  Germany's  industry. 

He  says:  "As.  a  result  of  the  costs  of  insurance,  which  have 
gradually  become  monstrous,  German  industry  is  put  at  a  disad- 
vantage and  is  hampered  to  the  extreme  in  its  competition  with 
foreigners/' 

Caused  Rise  in  Prices. 

Indeed,  Mr.  Friedensburg  makes  the  astonishing  statement  that 
the  German  system  of  workmen's  compensation  is  held  responsible 
for  the  marked  rise  in  prices  which  is  felt  to  be  oppressive  by  all 
classes  of  the  German  population. 

Mr.  Wolfe  is  of  the  opinion  that  whether  the  state  will  under- 
take the  employers'  liability  business  to  the  exclusion  of  the  com- 
panies depends  upon  the  attitude  of  those  companies  and  their 
disposition  to  co-operate  with  the  state  in  the  solution  of  the  eco- 
nomic problem.  He  said  that  employers'  liability  insurance  repre- 
sents more  than  one-half  of  the  entire  liability  business  transacted 
and  consequently  the  question  of  state  insurance  is  of  vital  interest 
to  the  underwriter. 

While  heretofore  the  question  may  have  seemed  to  the  under- 
writers a  fad  or  a  form  of  socialistic  doctrine  and  an  interference 
with  the  right  of  contract,  a  discourager  of  thrift  and  an  encourager 
of  malignering  and  intentional  accidents,  public  opinion  is  over- 
whelmingly in  favor  of  entering  the  cost  of  human  accidents  as 
a  part  of  the  cost  of  production,  and  the  underwriters,  in  the 
opinion  of  the  speaker,  must  face  the  situation  accordingly.  Mr. 
Wolfe  believes  that  a  desirable  law  would  embody  the  following 
features. 

First.  A  statement  of  the  circumstances  under  which  the  em- 
ployer becomes  responsible  for  an  accident  during  the  hours  of 
employment. 

Second.  A  definite  scale  of  benefits  to  be  paid  by  the  em- 
ployer when  he  is  responsible. 


186         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

Third.  A  requirement  that  every  employer  to  whom  the  law 
applies  shall  file  with*  the  commission,  mentioned  hereafter,  satis- 
factory evidence  that  his  responsibility,  for  the  payment  of  benefits 
for  which  he  becomes  responsible  is  guaranteed  by  a  corporation 
authorized  to  transact  the  business  of  liability  insurance. 

Fourth.  The  appointment  of  a  commission  (some  of  the  mem- 
bers of  which  should  have  a  knowledge  of  the  technical  side  of 
employers'  liability  insurance)  which  would  classify  risks,  and 
would,  after  the  necessary  investigation,  fix  the  minimum  and  the 
maximum  rate  which  would  be  charged  any  corporation  authorized 
to  furnish  the  guarantees. 

Fifth.  A  provision  that  the  commission  may,  after  hearing  evi- 
dence, order  the  installation  of  proper  safety  devices  in  order  that 
accidents  may  be  prevented  as  far  as  possible. 

Sixth.  A  provision  that  those  employers  having  more  than 
a  certain  number  of  employes  may,  instead  of  becoming  insured 
in  a  private  company,  elect  to  deposit  with  the  state  the  minimum 
premium  required  by  the  commission,  which  deposit  is  to  be  in- 
creased from  time  to  time  as  required  by  the  commission,  in  order 
to  cover  the  present  values  of  benefits  to  be  paid,  and  is  to  be 
withdrawn  on  filing  with  the  commission  satisfactory  evidence  that 
the  deposit  is  not  required  for  the  payment  of  claims. 

Mr.  Rowe  stated  that  obviously  the  trouble  with  state  insurance, 
viewed  from  an  impartial  angle,  would  be  the  mixing  of  politics  with 
it.  "Workmen's  compensation  insurance,"  he  said,  "can  only  exert 
its  effect  as  a  blessing  if  free  from  all  exaggeration  and  particu- 
larly from  the  conscious  or  unconscious  love-making  with  the 
'lower  classes.' '; 

"Such  insurance,"  he  s'aid,  "must  be  issued  by  an  independent 
institution  free  from  all  partiality." 

*         *         * 

Employers  and  employes  should  not  lose  sight  of  the  fact  that 
less  than  50%  of  the  premiums  paid  goes  to  the  real  beneficiaries. 
Whether  or  not  this  may  be  considered  economic  waste  is  for  others 
to  judge. 

Here,  then,  are  introduced  two  methods,  one  the  "Employers' 
Liability  Act,"  which  has  been  discarded  by  practical  men,  the 
other  the  "Workmen's  Compensation  Act,"  now  before  us,  and  be- 
tween these  two  we  are  called  upon  to  choose. 

Your  committee  urges  a  workmen's  compensation  act  as  best 
fitted,  by  experience  and  practice,  to  the  mining  industry. 


WORKMEN'S    COMPENSATION  187 

The  liability  act  appears,  to  your  committee,  to  be  unjust  and 
unreasonable,  in  principle  and  in  practice — the  very  mention  of  it 
suggests  lawyers,  courts,  delays,  annoyance,  strained  relations,  ex- 
pense to  employers,  and  loss  to  workmen.  In  one  word,  it  means 
"fight."  The  compensation  act  means  "payment."  The  former  is 
an  unknown  quantity;  the  latter  is  a  fixed  principle  known  and 
computed  in  advance,  and  provided  for.  The  record  of  the  liability 
act  is  said  to  be  about  50%  adjustment — the  compensation  act 
means  100%  adjustment. 

Adjustment  under  a  liability  act  is  reported  by  one  large  coal 
operator  to  be  injurious  in  80%  of  cases  in  a  large  disaster,  in  that 
it  would  shower  money  into  the  hands  of  the  inexperienced,  where 
value  is  unknown,  and  where  money  and  widows  are  soon  parted. 
That  this  is  no  idle  dream  is  no  doubt  known  to  every  man  here,  and 
the  speaker  has  had  enough  experience  to  "fill  a  book."  Just  one 
experience  will  suffice  to  illustrate.  During  the  past  two  years  a 
certain  widow,  of  a  miner,  received  a  so-called  liability  adjustment. 
Two  of  the  first  purchases  made  were  a  gold  watch  and  a  silk  dress, 
which  added  to  other  things  made  the  expenditure  for  the  first 
month  $900.00.  She  spent  over  three  thousand  dollars  a  year"  for 
these  two  years,  and  now  finds  herself  and  five  children  objects  of 
charity.  Surely  it  cannot  be  argued  that  this  is  the  compensation 
intended.  True,  it  was  her  inexperience  and  failure  to  value  money 
that  worked  the  mischief.  This  is  the  very  thing  we  argue.  This 
woman  is  a  fair  type  of  those  with  whom  the  mining  industry  has 
to  deal,  and  the  illustration  is  from  life  and  by  no  means  an  isolated 
case. 

Under  the  compensation  act  no  such  temptation  would  have 
presented  itself — the  adjustment  would  have  simply  continued  the 
natural  earning  and  pay  conditions  for  a  period  of  years,  insured  the 
woman  against  her  own  inexperience  and  extravagance,  insured  to 
the  children  the  real  object  of  the  act,  and  be  a  blessing  to  the 
family  and  to  the  community. 

Liability  law  adjustment,  in  the  judgment  of  the  committee,  is 
a  mistake — is  uncertain  and  unreasonable— is  an  injustice  to  all  con- 
cerned, and  is  prejudicial  to  all  the  best  interests  of  a  miner's 
widow  and  children — that  it  defeats  a  good  intention,  and  does 
not  insure  the  care,  education,  and  opportunities  of  life,  supposedly 
vouchsafed,  to  the  husband  and  father,  by  a  lawVhich  caused  him 
to  risk  and  lose  his  life  in  an  honest  belief,  and  a  sincere  endeavor,  to 
provide  for  his  family.  In  short,  it  looks  as  though  the  most 


188         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

ardent  supporters  of  an  employers'  liability  law,  are  ambulance 
chasers  and  those  who  could  hope  to  profit  by  a  disturbed  condition, 
as  between  capital  and  labor. 

It  may  not  be  out  of  place  to  again  quote  from  the  remarks  of 
Mr.  Gompers,  who  says :  "As  a  principle,  compensation  is  wisest, 
is  best,  and  more  economic,  and  would  not  tend  to  disturb  the  rela- 
tions between  the  injured  workman  and  his  employer,  as  does 
liability."  Surely  no  one  will  argue  that  the  best  interests  of  the 
yforkmnn  are  overlooked  in  this  opinion. 

As  to  the  question,  Who  should  pay  the  cost?  there  is  no  need 
to  take  up  your  time  in  argument.  It  is  conceded  to  be  a  legitimate 
charge  on  industry,  and  that  every  industry  ought  to  bear  its  own 
cost. 

Liability  Act  Wrong  in  Principle  and  Practice. 

It  is  also  conceded  that  labor  is  just  as  necessary  for  the 
maintenance  of  industry  as  any  other  commodity,  and  that  the  cost 
of  compensation,  as  a  fixed  principle  of  industry,  should  be  reckoned 
with  in  placing  a  price  upon  the  finished  product.  Upon  the 
grounds  stated  we  believe  the  liability  act  to  be  wrong  in  prin- 
ciple and  practice,  and  that  the  injustice  of  it  falls  upon  those  who 
are  least  able  to  bear  it,  on  the  one  hand,  and,  upon  the  oth'er  hand, 
this  injustice  would  fall  upon  those  who  are  supposed  to  be  wealthy, 
which  supposition  is  based  upon  opinion  thoroughly  unfamiliar  with 
the  facts,  and  therefore  incompetent,  an  opinion  of  those  who  do 
not  stop  to  consider  whether  or  not  the  cost  of  their  wishes  is 
within  the  possibilities  of  the  industry,  or  to  take  into  consideration 
the  fact  that  not  one  out  of  ten  coal  companies  could  stand  the  cost 
of  some  of  the  disasters  which  have  occurred  during  the  last  few 
years,  under  a  liability  act,  or  the  further  fact  that  less  than  ten 
per  cent  of  the  coal  companies  have  as  much  money  invested  as  the 
cost  of  some  of  the  mine  disasters  of  the  past  three  years,  and  that 
a  liability  act  would  bankrupt  ninety  per  cent  of  the  companies 
should  this  class  of  disaster  visit  their  mines.  Surely  such  a  law 
would  endanger  the  industry,  and  therefore  cannot  be  the  sober 
judgment,  or  even  the  sincere  desire,  of  either  workmen  or 
employer. 

The  mining  industry  should  stand  ready  to  bear  the  burden  of 
its  own  accidents — it  should  stand  ready  to  pay  a  tax  of  one  cent 
per  ton  of  coal  mined  to  meet  the  necessities  of  the  case  and  to  pro- 
vide the  necessary  funds. 

It  should  stand  ready  to  have  this  fund  administered  wisely 
in  the  interests  of  the  workmen  and  their  families. 


WORKMEN'S     COMPENSATION  189 

It  has  always  stood  ready  to  consider,  and  has  introduced  every 
known  precaution  to  prevent  these  accidents,  and  to  safeguard  every 
man  employed  above  or  below  the  ground. 

It  considers  all  this  right,  reasonable  and  just,  and  that  the  best 
direction  to  move  in,  to  accomplish  best  results,  is  the  passing  of  the 
workmen's  compensation  act. 

This  consideration  of  the  subject  is  not  based  upon  selfish  or 
narrow  motives.  The  company  I  have  the  honor  to  represent  oper- 
ates in  five  states — the  cost,  to  our  company,  under  this  act,  and 
which  act  it  approves  of,  will  mean  fifty  to  sixty  thousand  dollars 
a  year,  and  it  is  only  one  of  many,  all  of  which  goes  to  show  that  the 
industry  is  actuated  wholly  by  humane  motives,  and  a  sincere 
desire  to  squarely  meet  the  conditions  of  the  times,  therefore  the 
honesty  of  the  mining  industry  view  of  the  matter  must  be  self- 
evident  to  every  right  thinking  man. 

In  the  preceding  argument  we  have  referred  to  the  best  direc- 
tion to  move  in  to  accomplish  the  best  results,  and  have  clearly 
stated  our  reasons  in  favor  of  the  compensation  act.  There  is  an- 
other important  point  to  consider  with  reference  to  this  act,  namely, 
the  mining  industry  must  give  its  best  thought  to  the  method  of 
introducing  and  passing  the  act — it  cannot  be  left  to  the  unfamiliar 
majority.  The  combined  co-operative  influence  and  wisdom  of  this 
Congress  is  vitally  necessary  to  guide  public  opinion  and  legislators 
in  this  important  matter.  The  necessity  for  reasonably  uniform 
legislation  by  the  different  states  of  the  Union  must  not  be  lost  sight 
of.  Uniformity  of  legislation  on  all  subjects  of  common  interest  is 
one  of  the  most  important  questions  of  the  times.  It  was  the  Hon. 
Seth  Low,  President  of  the  National  Civic  Federation,  speaking 
upon  this  question,  who  said : 

"If  one  industrial  state  makes  a  change  in  the  law 
of  master  and  servant,  or  of  negligence,  it  may  unwitting- 
ly greatly  endanger  its  manufacturing  industries,  but  if  the 
competitive  industrial  states  will  move  'correspondingly 
along  the  same  lines,  no  one  of  them  is  likely  to  be  en- 
dangered, and  the  wrhole  country  may  be  benefited." 
And,  along  the  same  lines,  it  was  Senator  Root  who  said : 

"The  time  has  come  when  each  state  must  legislate 
on  matters  of  common  interest  from  the  point  of  view  of 
one  of  a  family  of  states,  rather  than  from  the  point  of 
view  of  an  individualism  that  is  self  sufficient — the  people 
of  the  country  have  grown  together  in  so  many  ways, 
without  regard  to  state  lines,  that,  unless  fairly  uniform 


190         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

legislation  can  be  had  upon  a  constantly  increasing  number 
of  subjects,  the  demand  for  action  by  the  central  Govern- 
ment is  likely  to  become  irresistible,  and,  in  time,  even  to 
require  an  amendment  of  the  Constitution  of  the  United 
States  to  give  to  the  central  Government  the  power  the 
states  fail  to  use  for  the  common  benefit." 

It  is  to  bring  about  just  this  uniformity  that  we  recommend  to 
this  Congress  the  appointment  of  a  general  committee,  and  we  might 
go  a  little  farther  than  the  printed  recommendation  and  have  this 
committee  consist  of  one  man  from  each  of  the  several  states,  this 
general  committee  to  have  charge  of  the  enactment  of  the  law  pre- 
sented by  the  committee,  each  appointee  to  act  as  chairman  of  a 
committee  of  five  within  his  state,  composed  of  himself  and  four 
other  members,  charged  with  the  duty  and  responsibility  of  seeing 
to  it  that  the  state  legislatures  of  those  states  shall  pass  this  law. 

The  necessity  for  careful  study,  for  the  wisdom  which  comes 
from  the  multitude  of  counsel,  and  for  definite  and  determined 
action,  is  clearly  evident. 

The  American  mining  industry  should  here  go  on  record  as 
favorable  to  that  solution  of  this  problem  which  is  right,  reasonable 
and  just  to  the  industry,  to  the  employer,  and  to  the  employe. 

A  law  that  strikes  at  the  life  of  the  industry  will  be  a  calamity. 

A  law  that  does  justice  to  employer  and  employe,  that  operates, 
and  compensates,  without  delay,  friction  or  loss,  will  be  a  blessing. 
May  the  "wisdom  which  cometh  -from  above"  lead  and  guide  us  into 
that  which  is  best. 


Workmen's  Liability  Insurance. 

BY  C.  O.  BARTLETT, 
CLEVELAND,  OHIO. 


During  the  last  few  years,  and  especially  the  last  year,  very 
much  has  been  said  about  workmen's  liability  insurance,  and  quite 
a  number  of  our  states  have  enacted  laws  pertaining  to  this  im- 
portant question.  The  bone  of  contention  is, — Who  shall  pay  the 
bill  ?  It  is  certainly  very  nice  for  every  workman  in  a  mine,  factory, 
or  on  a  farm  to  have  a  workman's  insurance  policy,  and  especially 
would  this  be  true  if  somebody  else  paid  the  premium. 

There  seems  to  be  a  sort  of  general  opinion  that  insurance 
companies  are  robbers,  that  they  have  made  vast  fortunes  out  of 
the  employers'  insurance  business,  and  if  the  state  or  general  gov- 
ernment would  go  into  this  business,  the  rate  would  be  very  much 
less.  Now  the  true  facts  of  such  matters,  judging  from  the  past, 
are  that  all  business  done  by  a  city,  state,  or  general  government 
costs  nearly  twice  as  much  as  when  done  by  private  corporations 
or  individuals,  and  we  see  no  reason  why  there  should  be  any  varia- 
tion from  this  general  rule  in  the  insurance  business,  and  I  think  it 
is  fair  to  assume  that  when  any  state,  or  the  United  States  as  a 
whole,  get  into  the  liability  insurance  business,  the  cost  will 
increase  the  same  as  it  has  done  in  other  lines,  and  the  idea  that  a 
lot  of  money  will  be  saved  is  only  a  myth. 

In  taking  up  this  question,  we  should  consider,  and  consider 
most  carefully,  that  where  there  is  one  large  mining  corporation  or 
other  corporation,  there  are  hundreds  of  smaller  ones  doing  busi- 
ness in  every  state,  and  I  wish  to  speak  especially  of  these  medium 
sized  corporations  or  companies.  The  large  companies  like  the 
Philadelphia  &  Reading  Coal  &  Iron  Company,  the  United  States 
Steel  Corporation,  the  Pittsburgh  Coal  Company,  the  Standard  Oil 
Company,  the  International  Harvester  Company  and  some  others  of 
similar  type  control  very  largely  the  selling  prices  of  their  products ; 
in  other  words,  when  they  say  thumbs  up,  up  they  go,  and  when 
they  say  thumbs  down,  down  they  go,  but  the  medium  fellow,  with 
competition  on  every  corner  cannot  do  this,  and  if  we  add  to  the 
expense  of  these  companies,  even  at  the  rate  of  i%  a  year  on  the 
capital  stock,  it  will  mean  just  as  sure  as  the  sun  will  rise  tomorrow 
that  thousands  of  them  will  go  to  the  wall. 


192         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

To  illustrate  this  fact,  let  me  state  that  two  years  ago  the  state 
of  Ohio,  which  is  one  of  the  largest  manufacturing  states  in  the 
Union,  one  of  the  best  located  for  manufacturing  purposes,  with 
plenty  of  coal  at  a  low  price  and  of  a  good  quality,  with  cheap  iron 
ore  of  a  good  quality,  the  best  of  water  and  rail  transportation  facil- 
ities, the  best  of  farming  lands  from  one  end  to  the  other  to  supply 
bread  and  meat,  and  perhaps  more  advantages  than  any  other  state 
in  the  Union,  put  a  tax  of  i/ioth  of  i%,  that  is  a  special  tax  of 
i/ioth  of  i%  on  all  corporations,  and  last  year  they  increased  this 
by  50%,  making  a  yearly  tax  of  il/2  mills  on  every  dollar  of  the 
capital  stock.  In  other  words,  a  company  of  $60,000  capital  stock 
is  now  compelled  to  put  into  the  State  treasury  as  a  special  yearly 
tax  $90  per  year.  This  may  seem  like  a  small  amount,  but  last 
spring  more  than  1200  of  the  Ohio  corporations  were  delinquent  in 
this  special  tax,  the  delinquency  amounting  to  more  than  $2,000. 

To  further  illustrate,  if  a  tax  of  one  cent  a  ton  were  put  on  all 
coal  mined  in  the  United  States,  it  will  mean  very  nearly  i%  on 
the  selling  price  of  all  the  coal  mined  in  the  United  States,  and 
according  to  Mr.  Parker,  the  output  of  coal  in  the  United  States  in 
1910  was  501,000,000  tons,  and  at  ic  a  tojn  means  over  $5,000,000. 
I  do  not  hesitate  to  state  that  the  33  million  tons  of  ore  mined  in 
the  state  of  Ohio  last  year  did  not  pay  dividends  to  the  owners  of 
the  mines  of  more  than  2%  and  a  tax  of  i%  would  mean  ruination 
to  very  many  of  them,  for  we  assure  you  that  a  great  many  mines  in 
the  state  of  Ohio  are  earning  extremely  small  dividends. 

According  to  this  same  report  by  Mr.  Parker,  the  average  price 
of  bituminous  coal  is  a  little  over  $1.00  a  ton.  Now  then,  it  has 
never  been  estimated  by  any  actuary  that  the  Workmen's  Liability 
Insurance  tax  against  any  mining  or  other  company  would  be  less 
than  this  amount,  and  probably  it  will  be  very  much  more,  possibly 
200%  more ;  in  fact,  we  are  told  by  insurance  companies  that  it  will 
be  fully  this  much  and  we  have  no  reason  to  believe  that  the  insur- 
ance companies  are  liars.  At  any  event,  so  important  a  measure  as 
the  workmen's  liability  insurance  should  receive  the  most  careful 
consideration. 

When  we  look  at  it  carefully  and  boil  it  down,  it  simply  means 
this:  that  all  workmen  in  mines  and  factories  will  have  a  liability 
insurance  policy,  so  that  in  case  of  accident  they  shall  draw  a  cer- 
tain amount  a  week,  say  60%  of  the  amount  of  their  wages ;  that  in 
case  of  death,  their  families  will  draw  a  certain  amount  a  week  up 
to  a  certain  maximum,  say  three  or  four  thousand  dollars. 


\VORK.M  H.VS     LIABILITY     INSURANCE  193 

So  far  this  seems  easy.  It  is  certainly  a  mighty  good  thing 
for  each  workman  to  have  an  insurance  against  injury  or  death,  but 
from  here  on  comes  the  question, — Who  shall  pay  the  bill?  Nat- 
urally the  workmen  are  anxious  for  the  employer  to  pay  the 
premium,  and  naturally  the  employer  is  somewhat  loath  to  do  it. 
We  must  not  forget  the  fact  that  over  80%  of  the  men  engaged  in 
business,  mining  or  other  kinds  of  business,  do  not  meet  with 
success.  Again,  I  wish  to  say  to  the  miners  and  manufacturers 
that  if  it  is  legal  to  insure  the  workmen  in  the  mines  and  factories 
throughout  the  cities  and  towns,  is  is  equally  as  important  to  insure 
the  workmen  on  the  farms. 

There  seems  to  be  a  sort  of  a  prevailing  idea  that  mining  is  a 
very  dangerous  occupation,  yet  statistics  show  that  mining  is  far 
less  dangerous  than  a  very  large  number  of  manufacturing  indus- 
tries. By  statistics  given  by  the  government,  it  is  found  that  in  the 
state  of  Pennsylvania  mining  is  about  one-thirtieth  as  dangerous  as 
making  nuts  and  bolts.  It  is  not  more  dangerous  than  railroading 
and  only  half  as  dangerous  as  farming.  By  such  statistics  as  can 
be  had  in  this  country,  and  especially  in  Germany,  more  than  45% 
of  all  the  accidents  happen  on  farms,  and  there  is  no  question  what- 
ever in  my  judgment  but  what  farming  as  it  is  carried  on  at  the 
present  time  in  the  United  States,  with  its  improved  machinery  is 
far  more  dangerous  than  mining.  Now  if  it  is  necessary  to  protect 
the  fellow  in  the  mines,  at  the  bench  or  forge,  why  is  it  not  equally 
as  well  to  protect  the  man  on  the-  farm,  behind  the  plow,  or  behind 
the  corn  shredder  and  anything  that  protects  one  without  protecting 
the  other  should  never  be  sustained  by  any  one  court  and  I  hope  it 
never  will  be. 

Very  much  is  being  said  about  the  high  cost  of  living.  There 
are  two  very  important  reasons  for  this ;  one  the  scarcity  of  water. 
When  the  rain  fails  to  come,  the  corn,  wheat  and  vegetables  wither 
and  die.  The  other  reason  is  the  scarcity  of  farm  labor  throughout 
the  entire  country.  You  cannot  expect  the  boys  to  remain  in  the 
country  and  work  twelve  hours  a  day  for  a  dollar  and  a  half  or  less 
when  they  can  get  two  or  three  times  this  amount  in  a  mine  and 
work  six  or  eight  hours  a  day,  or  in  a  factory  and  get  at  least 
double  the  amount.  Now  if  we  throw  in  an  insurance  policy  be- 
sides, it  will  add  to  the  burden. 

That  all  manufacturers  of  the  United  States  are  very  much 
interested  in  this  question  and  are  very  anxious  indeed  to  have  some 
law  enacted,  there  is  no  question,  and  I  feel  sure  I  am  speaking  the 
sentiments  of  a  very  large  part  of  the  manufacturers  in  the  state 


194         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN     MIXING    CONGRESS 

of  Ohio  when  I  state  that  they  do  not  feel  as  though  they  should 
pay  the  premium.  It  seems  to  me  that  the  only  just  way  to  do  this 
is  for  the  employer  to  pay  half  and  the  employe  pay  the  other  half 
and  let  the  general  government,  either  State  or  National,  bear  the 
expense  of  the  burden  of  carrying  out  the  provision  of  the  law. 

The  true  object  of  a  liability  insurance  should  be  to  prevent 
accidents  and  from  an  experience  of  many  years,  I  feel  absolutely 
confident  in  making  the  assertion  that  if  any  mine  or  factory  in- 
sures its  employes  and  pays  for  the  entire  insurance,  that  the  num- 
ber of  accidents  will  increase  very  rapidly  indeed ;  in  fact,  I  haven't 
the  slightest  doubt  about  it,  but  if  you  say  to  the  workman,  you 
pay  half  of  this  and  I  will  pay  the  other  half,  then  you  will  have 
prevented  to  a  very  large  degree  all  accidents,  for  the  reason  that 
the  workmen  will  be  equally  as  interested  and  will  try  in  every 
way  to  prevent  accidents  as  well  as  the  employer. 

Another  very  important  measure,  and  we  think  by  far  one  of 
the  most  important  of  this  whole  question,  is  that  this  will  bring 
the  employer  and  employe  to  a  very  close  and  very  friendly  rela- 
tionship, and  that  is  one  of  the  great  questions  which  the  manu- 
facturers are  trying  to  solve  today,  for  say  what  you  will,  we  are 
all  in  the  same  boat  and  should  work  in  harmony  as  much  as 
possible. 

It  is  a  terrible  thing  for  the  head  of  any  mine  or  factory  to 
learn  that  one  of  his  workmen  has  met  with  a  serious  accident, 
possibly  one  or  both  legs  broken,  and  you  can  rest  assured  that 
every  one  of  us  are  only  too  glad  to  do  anything  in  our  power  to 
prevent  these  things,  but  we  fully  realize,  however,  that  accidents 
will  happen,  that  they  always  did  and  all  it  is  possible  for  any  man 
to  do  is  to  prevent  them  as  far  as  possible.  In  other  words,  I  wish 
to  emphasize  the  fact  that  prevention  should  be  the  main  object  in 
any  workmen's  liability  insurance  law.  That  should  be  the  goal 
at  all  times,  in  all  places,  and  under  all  conditions. 

Very  much  has  been  said  about  the  splendid  laws  regarding 
liability  insurance  in  the  Old  Countries,  and  especially  is  this  so 
regarding  Germany.  One  would  almost  believe  by  hearing  some  of 
the  addresses  and  by  reading  some  of  the  articles  of  the  magazines 
that  it  was  almost  a  paradise  to  work  in  Germany ;  that  it  was  next 
to  a  front  seat  in  Heaven,  but  like  all  other  questions,  there  are  two 
sides  to  this  one,  and  the  other  side  we  don't  hear  so  much  about. 
They  do  not  tell  us  that  the  taxes  in  Germany  are  two  and  some- 
times more  than  four  times  as  much  as  they  are  here ;  that  is,  the 
direct  tax,  and  then  there  is  another  tax  there,  too,  in  this  great 


WORKMEN'S     LIABILITY     INSURANCE  195 

Germany,  a  tax  that  is  far  more  mighty  than  dollars  and  cents,  and 
that  is  that  every  boy  must  be  taken  from  his  home  and  give  five 
years  of  his  time  to  the  army.  Will  you  just  for  a  moment  consider 
what  this  tax  would  mean  to  you  and  to  me?  Just  as  your  boy  or 
mine  is  ready  to  enter  college,  how  would  you  like  to  have  the 
government  step  in  and  say:  "Here,  Charlie,  or  William,  you  come 
with  me  for  five  years ;  I  want  you  ?"  and  he  has  to  go.  Now,  then, 
if  an  observing  man  knows  anything,  he  knows  that  army  life  is 
very  bad  for  a  young  man  and  I  am  told  by  good  authority  by  some 
of  the  men  who  have  been  through  this  army  in  Germany  that 
many  of  the  good,  moral  boys,  in  fact  the  majority,  that  enter  the 
army  come  out  very  bad  men  at  the  end  of  their  term,  and  I  say 
right  here  that  if  there  is  any  one  thing  that  I  am  thankful  for,  it  is 
that  we  do  not  live  under  such  laws  as  they  have  in  Germany. 

But  let  us  go  a  little  further  into  these  wonderfully  good  laws 
of  Germany.  One  would  almost  be  led  to  believe  than  many  of  the 
workmen  would  immediately  go  back  to  work  under  these  favor- 
able conditions,  but  how  many  mechanics  from  your  town  left  for 
Germany  last  year?  I  venture  to  say  that  you  would  count  the 
number  on  your  four  fingers,  and  I  can  furthermore  venture  to  say 
that  then  you  can  divide  it  by  four  and  in  many  cases  you  can  sub- 
tract one  from  this  amount.  On  the  other  hand,  how  many  of  the 
workmen  from  that  country  have  come  to  this  country  to  better 
their  conditions?  Over  one  hundred  and  eighty  thousand  German 
people  came  here  last  year,  and  they  have  bettered  their  conditions, 
and  we  are  very  glad  to  see  them  and  want  them  to  come. 

In  Germany  the  employers  only  pay  one-third  of  the  cost,  and 
I  repeat  that  we  should  consider  and  consider  most  carefully  before 
we  burden  our  mining  operators  and  manufacturers  with  the  tre- 
mendous cost  of  Workmen's  Insurance.  If  this  agitation  and  legis- 
lation against  the  business  industries  of  our  country  keep  on  the 
the  rate  they  have  for  the  last  two  years,  very  serious  consequences 
will  surely  come  and  this  country  will  realize  that  we  have  killed 
the  goose  that  laid  the  golden  egg. 


The  Federal  Investigation  of  Ore  Treatment  Problems. 


BY   W.    N.    SEARCY, 
SILVERTON,    COLO. 


It  is  rather  embarrassing  to  me  to  undertake  to  discuss  a  ques- 
tion of  this  character  which  must  naturally  touch  upon  some  of 
the  technical  phases  of  mining,  when  I  myself  am  not  actively  en- 
gaged in  the  actual  business  of  mining.  I  am  interested  in  mining 
property;  all  that  I  have  is  invested  in  the  mining  country.  I 
represent  men  who  are  engaged  in  mining;  and,  therefore,  have  been 
selected  by  some  of  my  friends  in  Colorado  to  undertake  to  tell 
you  a  little  about  this  subject.  I  will  ask  that  you  bear  with  my 
want  of  oratorical  talent,  for  I  hope  that  whatever  may  be  lacking 
in  oratory  may  be  made  up  by  the  appeal  which  the  plain  facts  con- 
cerning the  mineral  industry  itself  must  make  to  your  sound 
judgment. 

If  the  Federal  Government  takes  hold  of  this  proposition  to 
solve  the  treatment  of  ore,  it  will  deal  only  with  general  problems ; 
it  will  only  undertake  the  more  intricate  and  difficult  problems,  and, 
therefore,  it  will  be  working  not  for  any  one  section,  but  for  the 
people  of  the  United  States.  I  take  it  that  this  mining  congress 
itself  will  not  take  up  any  sectional  issues,  and  while  in  undertaking 
to  discuss  this  subject,  I  shall  refer  to  some  sections  of  the  West, 
perhaps  to  some  sections  of  Colorado,  I  wish  you  to  understand, 
in  fairness  to  this  convention,  that  I  refer  to  those  localities  only 
as  illustrations ;  for  Illinois  and  Michigan  and  Utah  and  Missouri 
are  interested  in  this  problem  in  the  same  way  as  is  Colorado. 

Our  President's  address,  as  delivered  to  you  this  morning, 
goes  quite  fully  into  the  foundation  for  asking  Federal  help  in  the 
solution  of  these  questions.  He  has  explained  to  you  very  fully 
the  work  which  has  been  performed  by  the  agricultural  experiment 
department  of  the  United  States.  He  has  shown  you  how  valuable 
that  work  has  been,  and  the  tremendous  amount  of  good  that  has 
been  accomplished.  I  will  not  repeat  that  part  of  the  argument. 
What  Mr.  Dern  has  presented  to  you  upon  that  subject  should  be 
enough.  Now,  in  order  to  consider  whether  the  Federal  Govern- 
ment should  undertake  to  help  solve  these  problems  of  ore  treat- 
ment, it  is  necessary  first  to  consider  to  a  limited  extent  the  im- 
portance of  the  industry  itself.  If  you  will  take  the  eleven  states 


ORE  TREATMENT  PROBLEMS  197 

situated  west  of  the  Eastern  Colorado  line,  you  have  the  distinctively 
mountain  states  of  our  country.  If  you  will  add  to  them  the  ter- 
ritory of  Alaska,  you  have  what  may  be  called  the  metal  mining 
section  of  our  country.  This  is  not  because  Missouri  does  not 
produce  more  zinc  than  some  of  those  states,  nor  because  Michigan 
does  not  produce  more  copper  than  some  of  those  states,  but  be- 
cause in  those  western  states  the  mining'  industry  is  the  basic  or 
foundation  industry.  Mining  in  those  states  and  territories  bears 
the  same  relation  to  general  industry  there  that  manufacturing  does 
to  general  industry  in  New  England,  or  cotton  raising  to  the  in- 
dustry of  the  South.  Furthermore,  if  it  were  not  for  the  mining 
industry  existing  in  large  sections  of  these  mountain  States  their 
progress  would  be  very  materially  handicapped  and  their  final 
development  would  be  greatly  limited.  I  desire  to  give  you  a  local 
illustration :  There  is  a  section  in  Colorado  known  as  the  San 
Juan  Mining  district.  I  want  to  use  it  as  an  illustration.  That 
territory  is  formed  by  the  crossing  of  the  great  Continental  or 
Rocky  Mountain  Divide,  by  the  San  Juan  Range  of  mountains, 
thus  creating  a  large  and  very  precipitous  mountain  country.  For 
instance,  in  my  little  county  there  are  probably  20  or  25  mountains 
rising  to  13,000  feet  elevation,  and  our  engineers  tell  us  that  if  the 
entire  county  were  leveled  down  it  would  all  stand  above  the  timber 
line.  Silverton,  our  county  seat,  has  an  altitude  of  9,000  feet — up 
so  high  that  summer  heat  is  unknown.  Now  that  territory  itself 
covers  practically  three  thousand  square  miles  of  country,  that  is, 
the  mineral  section  alone  is  the  size  of  Delaware  and  Rhode  Island 
combined ;  but  the  important  thing  is  that  all  of  that  territory 
would  be  vacant,  all  that  territory  would  be  idle,  all  that  territory 
would  be  practically  useless  and  unoccupied  were  it  not  for  the 
mining  industry.  That  same  condition  exists  in  Utah ;  it  exists  in 
Idaho ;  it  exists  in  all  of  these  Western  states  that  I  have  men- 
tioned, and  if  the  mining  industry  is  not  to  be  protected  and  pre- 
served, we  are  going  to  leave  a  great  portion  of  the  western  section 
of  the  United  States  practically  unoccupied.  We  cannot  afford, 
as  citizens  of  the  United  States,  to  neglect  or  overlook  any  possible 
measure  or  step  which  may  make  that  portion  of  our  country 
populous  and  prosperous.  But  that  is  not  even  the  most  important 
prosperity  phase  of  this  subject.  While  I  have  mentioned  to  you 
a  mining  district  in  Southwestern  Colorado,  as  an  illustration, 
which  covers  three  thousand  square  miles  of  mountain  territory,  I 
wish  to  state  that  south  of  that  territory  is  a  farming  country 
which  is  fertile,  well-watered,  capable  of  producing  almost  any 


198         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

product  of  the  temperate  zone.  Now  that  farming  territory,  in- 
cluding therewith  the  mining  section,  covers  an  area  of  20,000 
square  miles,  and  extends  into  the  southeastern  part  of  Utah,  the 
northwestern  corner  of  New  Mexico,  and  it  extends  far  eastward 
in  Colorado.  Now  that  agricultural  territory  of  20,000  square 
miles  is  equivalent  in  size  to  Massachusetts  and  Connecticut  and 
Delaware  and  New  Jersey  combined.  It  is  capable  of  supporting 
hundreds  of  thousands  of  people.  Yet  that  agricultural  territory, 
under  present  conditions,  would  not  know  prosperity  if  it  were  not 
for  the  mining  cities  up  in  the  mountains  which  make  a  market  for 
the  agricultural  products.  I  desire  to  use  this  illustration  to  show 
you  by  a  concrete  example  the  importance  to  Colorado  and  to  Utah 
and  to  Nevada  and  to  Idaho,  and  to  every  other  State,  of  preserving 
and  conserving  the  interests  of  the  mining  industry  itself. 

Now  it  goes  further  than  that.  In  the  state  of  Colorado,  and, 
I  dare  say,  in  Utah  and  the  other  Western  states,  the  mining  in- 
dustry forms  the  basis  for  the  best  market  that  the  coal  miners 
themselves  know.  We  have  a  great  deal  of  coal  in  that  country,  as 
you  have  here,  but  it  takes  the  mining  industry  to  stand  in  the 
place  of  your  manufacturing  and  transportation  industries  of  the 
East. 

Another  idea  that  is  worth  considering.  That  western  country 
that  I  have  described,  including  Alaska,  covers  nearly  one-half 
the  entire  area  of  the  United  States.  Alaska  alone  is  equivalent  to 
five  of  the  -largest  states  you  would  be  likely  to  name,  excluding 
Texas.  That  big  western  section  should  not  be  brought  into  com- 
petition with  the  eastern  agricultural  sections,  when  by  proper  en- 
couragement of  the  mining  industry  in  that  western  metal-pro- 
ducing country,  it  will  provide  its  own  market  and  prevent  agri- 
culture of  the  West  from  competing  with  and  injuring  agriculture 
in  the  East.  Now  this  is  only  a  general  consideration  of  the  im- 
portance of  the  mining  industry  in  that  western  section  alone. 
The  same  considerations  apply  in  a  general  way  to  the  metal  mining 
industry  in  Illinois,  in  Missouri,  in  Wisconsin,  and  other  states. 

The  metal  mining  industry  has  another  phase  more  important 
than  mere  present  property  for  our  generation.  .  Something  has 
been  said  about  conservation.  Now,  I  may  not  agree  entirely  with 
the  views  recently  expressed  concerning  conservation,  but  I  cer- 
tainly do  agree  to  some  extent ;  and  that  is  to  say  that  true  con- 
servation should  be  a  conservation  which  saves  for  the  people  and 
not  one  which  denies  use  to  the  people. 


ORE  TREATMENT  PROBLEMS  199 

This  is  pre-eminently  the  age  of  metals.  It  is  the  age  of  elec- 
tricity. It  is  the  age  of  invention.  It  is  the  age  of  speed  It  is 
the  age  of  machinery.  Fifty  years  ago  if  you  had  been  sitting  in 
this  hall  and  holding  a  convention  and  a  neighboring  building  were 
being  erected  you  might  have  heard  the  blows  of  the  carpenters' 
hammers.  Today,  a  building  is  being  erected  there ;  and  some- 
where away  off  in  another  part  of  the  city  there  is  situated  a  tre- 
mendous plant  involving  tons  and  hundreds  of  tons  of  iron  and 
steel  and  copper  in  its  construction.  From  that  plant  run  electric 
wires,  involving  more  tons  of  copper,  out  through  the  city,  until 
they  ramify  every  street  and  avenue  in  the  metropolis.  One  of  those 
wires  is  attached  there  on  the  side  of  the  new  building  to  some 
kind  of  an  electric  machine.  The  building  itself  is  of  steel.  The 
machine  that  makes  the  noise  is  of  steel,  copper  and  iron,  and 
instead  of  the  whack  of  the  old-fashioned  hammer,  you  hear  the 
vibrations  of  the  machine  hammer  riveting  beam  upon  beam  and 
erecting  a  structure  almost  wholly  composed  of  metal.  Yet  the 
giant  steel  frame  you  view  from  the  window  is  merely  an  ordinary 
business  building-  of  this  day.  That  building  is  only  an  illustra- 
tion. We  have  passed  by  the  old  days  of  wood  and  stone.  The 
cradle  and  the  coffin  are  made  of  metal.  The  conveyances  that  we 
ride  in  along  the  street  and  the  pleasure  boat  are  made  of  metal. 
The  man-of-war  and  the  fortress  resisting  the  guns  must  be  made 
of  steel. 

Mining  and  Agriculture  Rquall\  Important. 

As  our  chairman  told  you  in  his  very  able  address  this  morn- 
ing we  are  coming  to  the  place  where  people  will  realize  that 
mining,  in  its  broader  phases,  and  agriculture  are  but  two  equal 
supplemental  divisions  of  the  industry  of  our  Nation,  one  as  im- 
portant as  the  other. 

•The  Government  geological  report  for  1909  shows  that  in  1880 
we  used  substantially  $185,000,000  worth  of  metal  produced  from 
our  storehouse.  By  the  year  1900,  twenty  years  later,  that  had 
increased  to  $511,000000.  In  other  words,  after  allowing  for  all 
reasonable  change  in  the  price  of  the  commodity  per  pound,  in 
twenty  years  we  more  than  doubled  the  demand  upon  our  store- 
house for  the  use  of  metal  therein  contained ;  and  in  1909  we  had 
reached  something  like  $750,000,000  annual  production,  proving 
that  by  1920  we  will  again  have  doubled  the  demand  upon  the 
storehouse  for  the  use  of  metal. 

Now  I  do  not  believe  it  would  be  conservative  or  sound  to 
say  that  we  are  rapidly  approaching  the  place  where  metal  cannot 


200         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN     MIXING     CONGRESS 

be  found,  nor  that  we  are  immediately  going  to  exhaust  that  store- 
house. I  do  not  believe  that  we  have  reached  the  place  where 
any  calamity  views  need  be  entertained,  but  I  do  believe  we  have 
reached  the  place  where  common  sense  and  sound  'business  policy 
should  call  upon  the  people  of  this  Nation  to  use  every  reasonable 
endeavor  to  see  that  the  metal  extracted  from  the  earth  each  year 
is  put  into  form  where  it  will  be  saved  and  used,  and  not  wasted. 
That  is  the  problem  that  is  brought  before  you  today.  These 
Western  States  that  I  have  mentioned  and  the  territory  of  Alaska 
produce  substantially  $250,000,000  worth  of  metal  each  year 
This  $250,000,000  worth,  of  course,  includes  silver  and  gold,  and  it 
is  only  fair  to  state  that  in  certain  sections  of  the  country,  like 
Cripple  Creek,  the  miners  have  been  able  to  effect  a  fairly  success- 
ful saving  of  gold  and  silver  contained  in  the  ore,  possibly  90%  ; 
more  probably  an  average  of  only  85% 'of  the  silver  and  gold  con 
tained  in  the  ores  bearing  only  those  two  products.  But  that  is  not 
the  problem.  The  problem  that  arises  in  those  mining  sections  is  in 
treating  what  we  call  refractory  or  complex  ores.  The  big  veins 
cutting  through  the  mountains  contain  lead  and  zinc  and  copper  and 
iron  and  manganese  and  quartz,  and  perhaps  a  half-dozen  other 
metallic  contents,  combined  in  almost  every  conceivable  form  anil 
proportion ;  and  these  big  low-grade  veins  form  the  solid  per- 
manent basis  of  the  mining  industry.  Now,  when  you  realize  that 
a  lead  smelter  cannot  treat  zinc,  but  must  burn  it  up,  and  that  a 
zinc  smelter  cannot  successfully  treat  other  metals,  you  will  readily 
realize  the  difficult  problem  which  is  immediately  presented  to  the 
man  who  is  grinding  that  ore  and  sending  it  to  the  market.  In 
this  class  of  ore,  known  as  refractory,  or  complex  ore,  I  believe 
it  is  safe  to  say  that  in  the  average  low-grade  mining  district  the 
saving  effected  in  the  course  of  milling  does  not  exceed  70%  of 
the  value  of  the  contents.  Seventy  per  cent  saving  necessarily 
means  a  30%  loss  or  waste,  because  as  a  general  rule  the  tailings 
from  the  mill  go  into  the  streams  or  are  scattered  over  the  surface 
of  the  earth  without  being  in  any  way  conserved.  Therefore,  the 
loss  that  is  suffered  is  a  permanent  loss. 

It  might  be  well  to  explain  that  in  the  low-grade  mining  dis- 
tricts of  Colorado,  Utah,  and  other  states,  where  the  veins  are 
known  to  occur,  these  low-grade  ores  in  general  carry  values  of 
from  $4  to  $20  per  ton.  Now  when  you  consider  that  these  me- 
tallic contents  are  included  along  with  quartz,  or  other  material 
constituting  one-half  or  two-thirds  of  the  total  tonnage,  and  when 
you  take  into  consideration  the  railroad  freight  that  must  be  paid 


ORE     TREATMENT     PROBLEMS  201 

per  ton  and  the  rather  high  charge  that  must  be  imposed  by  any 
smelter  that  undertakes  to  treat  ore  containing  so  much  silica,  you 
will  readily  realize  that  the  miners  cannot  ship  that  crude  low-grade 
ore  to  a  smelter  and  have  it  successfully  treated.  Therefore  the 
burden  is  imposed  upon  them  of  first  separating  out  the  silica  or  the 
quartz  contents  in  connection  with  their  ore.  Next  they  must 
confront  the  problem  of  undertaking  to  separate  zinc  away  from 
the  lead,  copper  and  iron,  and  at  the  same  time  try  to  save  the  gold 
and  silver  value;  so  that  when  they  market  their  product  they  may 
be  able  to  send  the  lead  and  copper  and  iron  to  what  is  known  as  a 
lead  smelter  and  the  zinc  contents  of  the  ore  to  what  is  known  as  a 
zinc  smelter.  This  presents  a  complex  and  difficult  problem.  I 
suppose  there  are  a  hundred  different  forms  of  mills  or  of  machines 
or  of  contrivances  that  have  been  invented  for  the  purpose  of  sep 
arating  and  treating  these  ores.  Some  are  fairly  successful  in  some 
branches  of  the  industry ;  but  no  general  solution  of  the  problem 
has  yet  been  presented.  I  believe  it  is  safe  to  say,  as  I  have  told 
you,  that  the  loss  in  this  branch  of  the  metal  mining  industry  will 
equal  30%  of  the  total  product  brought  out  of  the  ground. 
Losses  of  Rare  Metals,  in  Mining. 

A  further  illustration  of  these  losses  may  be  found  in  the  case 
of  certain  rare  metals.  For  instance,  in  one  county  in  Colorado  it 
was  discovered  a  few  years  ago  that  minable  quantities  of  tungsten 
existed.  The  miners  there  concluded  that  they  would  try  to  pro- 
duce tungsten  commercially.  They  found  very  substantial  deposits 
of  that  metal.  They  proceeded  to  produce  the  metal,  produce  it 
commercially,  and  I  understand  they  did  so  at  a  profit.  But  in 
producing  the  tungsten,  as  far  as  I  have  been  able  to  learn,  not  less 
than  30%  produced  from  the  ground  is  lost  in  the  course  of  milling, 
before  the  concentrates  are  shipped  to  the  market. 

Another  illustration  of  this  same  loss  is  in  the  vanadium  de- 
posits also  found  in  a  southwestern  county  of  the  same  state. 
Vanadium  is  used  in  hardening  and  toughening  certain  varieties  of 
steel  and  also  for  other  purposes.  It  is  a  valuable  metal,  rather  a 
rare  metal.  Now  in  the  production  of  this  vanadium  which  has 
been  found  in  that  county  it  is  reported  that  one  company  takes  out 
that  ore,  ships  it  all  the  way  across  this  country  and  across  the 
ocean  to  Liverpool,  in  order  to  have  it  treated.  The  saving  in 
Liverpool  may  be  very  good,  but  there  is  but  little  saving  to  the 
industries  of  our  country  in  paying  such  freight,  besides  the  treat- 
ment charge.  Another  company  is  undertaking  to  treat  the  vana- 
dium on  the  ground  by  a  process,  as  I  understand,  devised  by  their 


202         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN     MINING    CONGRESS 

own  metallurgists.  It  is  stated  concerning  their  own  home  treat- 
ment that  the  loss  is  at  least  one-third  of  the  valuable  metal  which 
they  have  found,  saving  only  two-thirds. 

Another  loss  which  is  worth  noticing  in  the  metal  producing 
industry  of  the  west  is  that  of  sulphur,  arsenic  and  manganese  and 
other  similar  materials,  and  chemicals  of  various  kinds  and  char- 
acter. These  are  disregarded  because  at  the  present  time  there  is 
no  profit  in  undertaking  to  save  them.  It  is  all  right  to  talk  of 
conservation,  but  no  private  citizen  can  afford  to  spend  his  own 
money  and  operate  at  a  loss  for  the  purpose  of  trying  to  conserve 
the  natural  resources ;  and  it  is  only  by  the  discovery  of  means 
which  will  enable  him  to  conserve  the  natural  resources  while 
working  at  a  profit  that  any  miner  will  invest  money  in  saving  or 
producing  a  metal. 

Now  as  a  final  effect  of  this  loss  in  the  treatment  of  the  west- 
ern metals,  I  believe  it  is  fair  to  estimate  that  the  $250,000,000 
worth  of  metal  marketed  by  those  western  states  and  Alaska,  rep- 
resent also  an  actual  loss- of  metal  which  is  not  marketed,  of  at 
least  $50,000,000  per  year  in  the  lead,  copper,  zinc,  gold  and  silver 
alone,  besides  all  the  possible  by-products.  Then  when  you  con- 
sider the  further  loss,  say  ten  or  fifteen  per  cent,  in  the  treatment 
of  the  simple  gold  and  silver  ores,  and  when  you  consider  the 
further  loss  that  is  probably  encountered  in  such  states  as  Missouri 
and  Wisconsin  and  Illinois  in  the  treatment  of  any  zinc  or  lead  ore 
which  happens  to  be  in  the  leastwise  complex,  I  believe  it  is  safe 
to  say  that  there  stands  here  a  problem  of  loss  to  our  nation  of  at 
least  $100,000,000  per  year  of  metal  valuable  in  our  industries,  and 
which  some  day  will  be  indispensable  to  our  industries.  This  is 
the  problem  that  this  congress,  as  I  understand,  proposes  to  present 
to  the  Federal  Government ;  and  it  would  certainly  seem  to  be  worth 
while  for  the  Federal  Government  to  interest  itself  in  the  solution 
of  that  problem. 

Now  we  have  reached  the  point,  in  trying  to  discuss  this  ques- 
tion, of  considering  what  it  is  proposed  to  ask  the  Federal  Govern- 
ment to  do.  I  believe  there  has  been  more  misunderstanding,  more 
misconception  of  this,  not  necessarily  of  the  problem,  but  of  its 
possible  method  of  solution,  than  any  other  question  that  has  come 
before  this  assembly.  If  you  will  stop  and  study  the  problem  for  a 
moment  you  will  readily  realize  that  the  problem  is  not  one  to  be 
solved  by  the  United  States  Government  erecting  a  building  like 
this,  for  instance,  and  setting  up  machinery  there  and  shipping 
ore  to  that  building  to  test  it  by  that  machinery.  Why,  if  the  Gov- 


ORE  TREATMENT  PROBLEMS  203 

ernment  had  such  a  machine  today  it  would  send  it  out  to  Colo- 
rado and  Utah  and  mining  would  go  right  ahead.  We  would  make 
other  machines  just  like  it.  The  trouble  is  that  there  is  no  such 
machine  in  existence,  for  the  mechanical  saving  of  these  metals.  If 
there  were,  it  would  be  patented  by  some  private  individual  and  he 
would  make  a  million  dollars  a  year  out  of  it;  or  if  he  did  not 
patent  it,  every  mine  in  the  states  of  Colorado,  Washington  and 
Idaho  would  be  using  that  one  contrivance.  Therefore,  it  is  not  a 
question  of  trying  to  procure  the  United  States  Government  to  erect 
a  plant  in  Denver,  nor  in  Salt  Lake,  nor  in  San  Francisco,  nor  any- 
where else.  The  problem  is  of  such  a  nature  that  it  is  going  to 
take  years  of  work  by  the  best  metallurgists,  by  the  best  scientists, 
by  the  best  chemists  that  our  Government  can  afford  to  employ.  I 
believe  that  the  final  solution  of  this  question,  will  be  a  chemical  and 
electrical  solution  and  not  a  mere  mechanical  solution ;  but  the  work 
that  is  to  be  done  must  necessarily  be  done  right  down  in  the  field 
where  the  metals  exist. 

Department  of  Alines  Needed. 

We  need  a  department  of  mining  of  the  United  States,  to  be 
given  money  to  commence  on  this  work.  An  appropriation  of  at 
least  $500,000  should  be  made  for  Dr.  Holmes'  Department,  so 
that  he  can  commence  upon  the  investigation  of  this  problem  in 
every  mining  district  of  the  west.  I  do  not  mean  by  that  each  little 
isolated  section,  but  each  considerable  section  which  appears  to 
have  problems  peculiar  to  itself.  In  that  way  in  your  State  of  Utah 
you  would  be  able  to  have  a  representative  of  the  United  States' 
Government  go  in  there  in  your  district,  analyzing  your  ore,  watch- 
ing the  effect  of  each  milling  process  that  you  are  trying  to  put  into 
effect  and  he  would  finally,  after  a  few  months'  study,  be  able  to 
make  a  complete  analytical  report,  not  only  upon  your  ore,  but  upon 
your  processes,  and  your  saving  and  your  problems.  The  same 
thing  could  be  done  down  in  the  San  Juan  or  at  Aspen,  or  up  in 
Idaho,  or  in  other  mining  sections.  Then  after  the  local  or  field 
experiment  station  work  has  progressed  until  some  definite  informa- 
tion has  been  obtained  to  be  written  down  and  compiled  and  printed 
as  a  general  working  basis,  field  experiment  work  would  probably 
be  undertaken.  Until  you  have  reached  that  stage,  there  is  little 
necessity  for  a  central  plant;  but  after  you  have  reached  that  stage 
then  you  can  locate  your  central  plant  at  any  point  convenient  for 
the  mining  section ;  and  then  you  will  know  for  the  first  time  what 
you  actually  want  in  that  central  plant  or  what  could  be  devised 
for  it. 


204         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

In  the  report  of  our  President,  in  his  address  this  morning 
(and  which  I  believe  will  become  as  important  as  any  public  docu- 
ment which  has  been  promulgated  in  our  country  for  years)  he  has 
outlined  to  you  very  clearly  the  work  undertaken  and  accomplished 
by  the  Agricultural  Department.  I  believe  it  is  safe  to  say  that 
the  agricultural  experiment  station  work  'of  the  United  States  has 
saved  millions  of  dollars  to  the  farmers.  There  is  every  reason  to 
believe,  that  if  the  work  of  the  Federal  Government  is  broadened 
out,  the  same  kind  of  work,  or  the  same  plan,  can  be  instituted,  in 
the  mining  department,  and  just  as  great  results  will  be  accom- 
plished ;  and  there  is  some  reason  to  hope  that  the  results  may  be 
accomplished  even  more  speedily.  In  the  agricultural  problems  the 
question  is  generally  a  matter  of  long  observation,  of  culture  of 
plants,  of  watching  the  habits  of  insects,  and  of  progress  from 
year  to  year  in  undertaking  to  better  the  conditions  of  the  industry. 
In  other  words,  it  is  a  culture  or  growth  rather  than  a  solution  of  a 
problem.  While  in  the  metal  industry  these  problems  are  in  general 
few  in  number,  and  though  difficult  of  solution,  yet  they  are  closely 
related  to  each  other,  and  when  the  solution  comes  the  remedy 
will  be  immediate  and  complete.  I  believe  more  is  to  be  accom- 
plished in  the  metal  mining  industry  by  the  Federal  Government, 
for  the  same  amount  of  money  expended,  than  can  be  accomplished 
in  the  agricultural  department.  Now  if  the  Federal  Government 
by  the  investment  of  a  few  hundred  thousand  dollars  in  establish- 
ing these  experimental  stations,  first  in  the  districts  that  need  them 
most,  and  later  in  any  district  in  any  state  where  a  substantial 
saving  to  the  people  may  be  effected,  if  the  Federal  Government,  by 
such  limited  investment,  can  save  one-tenth  of  what  is  now  going 
to  waste  of  those  metals,  is  it  not  worth  while?  $10,000,000  saved 
by  a  few  hundred  thousand  dollars  investment,  should  be  a  sound 
investment,  whether  for  the  Federal  Government  or  any  private 
industry.  If  the  Federal  Government  can  be  so  successful  as  to 
make  a  complete  success  in  the  solution  of  these  problems,  we  have 
here  presented,  which  are  only  a  part  of  the  problems  of  the  in- 
dustry, then  it  will  mean  a  saving  to  our  nation  of  at  least  $100,000,- 
ooo  per  year. 

Nation  Would  Be  Benefited. 

Now  I  believe  that  every  patriotic  citizen  of  this  country  views 
with  approval  the  appropriation  by  our  Congress  of  nearly  $100,- 
000,000  for  the  purpose  of  supporting  the  army,  that  is,  just  so  long 
as  that  army  is  necessary;  and  I  believe  that  every  patriotic  citizen 
likewise  approves  the  appropriation  of  something  like  $125,000,000 


ORE     TREATMENT     PROBELMS  205 

by  Congress  for  the  support  of  the  navy,  so  long  as  such  a  navy  is 
necessary.  But  I  want  to  ask  if  it  is  not  sound  business  as  well  as 
sound  government  to  make  a  limited  appropriation  for  the  purpose 
of  conserving  and  saving  and  producing  the  metals  with  which  the 
armies  must  be  equipped,  with  which  the  navies  must  be  built,  with 
which  homes  and  cities  and  industries  must  be  founded.  The  first 
effect  of  any  such  a  move  by  the  government  would  of  course  be  a 
profit  to  the  metal  mining  industry;  but  I  have  tried  to  show  you 
that  it  is  a  foundation  industry,  a  basic  industry,  in  these  western 
states,  in  Illinois,  in  Missouri,  in  Michigan,  wherever  metal  is  pro- 
duced ;  furnishing  the  market  to  the  agriculturalist  who  stands  by 
ready  to  supply  the  provisions ;  furnishing  the  market  for  the  fac- 
tories of  the  east  that  must  furnish  hundreds  of  articles  to  every 
mining  section  of  the  western  part  of  the  nation.  There  is  some- 
thing more  about  this.  The  Federal  Government  by  undertaking 
such  a  campaign  as  this  is  not  only  bringing  profit  to  the  industry, 
it  is  not  only  improving  the  condition  of  every  state  which  has  the 
industry,  it  is  conferring  a  direct  and  substantial  benefit  upon  the 
whole  people  of  America.  Wherever  an  industry  is  enabled  to 
produce  at  a  less  cost,  or  what  is  the  same  thing  in  the  operation  of 
an  industry,  if  it  is  enabled  to  save  the  entire  product  instead  of 
losing  one-third  of  it,  then  the  natural,  the  inevitable,  result  will 
be  that  the  industry  itself  will  be  satisfied  to  take  a  less  propor- 
tion, and  the  people  at  large  will  receive  the  final  product  of  that 
industry  for  a  less  price.  Today  your  price  of  copper,  your  price 
of  lead,  your  price  of  zinc  is  fixed  by  the  necessary  charge  on  it  in 
order  to  have  it  produced  at  a  profit.  If  the  United  States  Govern- 
ment can  so  far  help  the  miners,  those  who  are  mining  and  treating 
this  ore,  that  they  can  save  the  entire  metallic  contents  of  the  ore, 
more  metal  will  be  produced  from  year  to  year  with  the  same  work, 
and  the  people  of  the  United  States  will  receive  a  fair  share  of 
the  benefits  at  a  reduction  in  price,  yet  the  industry  itself  making 
the  reduction  will  not  lose,  it  will  receive  enough  to  make  it  pros- 
perous. 

As  an  illustration  of  the  mining  benefits  to  the  whole  people,  I 
want  to  call  attention  to  the  tungsten  production  for  one  county 
in  Colorado.  Because  it  found  it  could  produce  that  article  com- 
merically  and  profitably,  it  produces  80  per  cent  of  the  tungsten 
of  the  United  States.  That  would  appear  to  mean  profit  to  that 
county  alone ;  but  it  does  not  work  that  way.  The  county  doe* 
receive  profit,  but  the  tungsten  is  used  to  double  the  durability  and 
value  of  steel,  a  certain  class  of  steel  that  is  needed  by  the  people ; 


206         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

and  now  that  it  has  become  cheap  enough,  tungsten  is  used  to  make 
the  filaments  in  the  electric  lamp,  and  in  turn  in  every  home 
throughout  the  land  the  amount  of  illumination  through  the  electric 
lamp  .for  the  same  cost  of  power,  for  the  same  expense,  is  prac- 
tically doubled  through  the  use  of  the  tungsten  filament.  The  same 
effect  is  brought  about  by  the  successful  mining  of  vanadium.  Now 
they  have  been  able  to  reach  a  stage  where  they  save  two-thirds 
of  the  vanadium,  and  by  using  an  exceedingly  small  proportion  or 
fraction  of  one  per  cent  of  vanadium  in  steel,  it  seems  to  double 
the  value  of  certain  high  speed  tool  machines  by  doubling  the  dura- 
bility. In  other  words,  the  benefit  comes  back  to  the  whole  people. 

Annual  Waste  of  Metals  Totals  $100,000,000. 
I  do  not  wish  to  take  more  of  your  time,  I  believe  that  the 
members  of  this  convention  do  not  need  to  be  persuaded  to  vote  for 
a  resolution  asking  Congress  for  a  liberal  appropriation  for  the 
purpose  of  enabling  the  metal  miners  of  the  United  States  to  save 
that  $100,000,000  that  today  is  lost.  That  metal  loss  is  practically 
a  permanent  loss.  Now,  we  hear  a  great  deal  about  conservation. 
The  term  is  used  every  place  it  will  apply,  and  sometimes  where  it 
won't  apply.  I  want  to  tell  you,  however,  that  in  comparing  the 
conservation  of  timber  and  of  metal  there  is  something  that  is  well 
worth  considering.  If  the  timber  in  a  certain  area  of  the  country 
be  destroyed  or  be  used  up,  it  is  possible  to  re-forest  that  entire 
area  with  better  trees  than  grew  there  before  in  60  to  70  years.  In 
other  words,  while  it  is  right  to  save  the  trees,  yet  if  we  do  happen 
to  use  up  the  timber  in  a  certain  district  the  loss  is  not  beyond 
remedy ;  it  is  not  one  from  which  we  cannot  recover.  But  when 
we  waste  the  fifty  to  one  hundred  millions  per  year  of  zinc,  lead, 
copper,  tungsten,  besides  the  gold  and  silver,  its  loss  is  practically 
irretrievable.  It  is  a  loss  that  can  not  be  replaced ;  and  it  is  not  too 
much  to  say,  when  we  are  doubling  the  output  of  these  metal? 
every  twenty  years,  that  whether  or  not  there  is  danger  that  we  are 
going  to  run  out  of  the  metal,  it  certainly  is  sound,  common  sense 
for  our  Federal  Government  to  cut  off  that  loss  if  there  is  any 
possible  way  to  do  it  at  any  reasonable  expenditure.  As  I  started  to 
tell  you,  I  believe  it  would  not  be  necessary  to  persuade  any  mem- 
ber of  this  convention  to  vote  for  such  a  resolution,  but  wre  ask  you 
to  do  more  than  vote  here.  I  believe  it  is  the  duty  of  the  members 
of  the  American  Mining  Congress  when  they  return  to  their  homes, 
to  take  up  this  question  with  their  congressmen  and  with  the  friends 
of  their  congressmen  so  that  the  great  metal  mining  industry 
(which  to  a  great  extent  forms  the  basis  of  a  successful  coal  mining 


ORE  TREATMENT  PROBLEMS  207 

industry)  so  that  this  great  metal  mining  industry  may  be  placed 
upon  a  sound  and  prosperous  basis,  where  the  products  extracted 
from  the  earth  will  be  saved  for  the  benefit  of  our  people  and  given 
to  them  instead  of  being  wasted. 

Just  one  more  suggestion  on  conservation.  It  may  be  right  in 
trying  to  conserve  timber  to  restrict  the  use  of  that  timber,  but  in 
trying  to  conserve  metals  I  believe  that  it  is  not  the  right  method 
of  conservation.  If  you  extract  the  metals,  such  as  copper,  from 
the  earth  and  put  them  in  the  form  of  bars,  they  are  practically  as 
indestructible  above  as  they  ever  were  below  the  ground.  The 
right  conservation  of  metal  is  not  to  prohibit  the  people  from  freely 
using  metal  or  to  try  to  impose  leasing  systems  or  restrictions  upon 
the  metal  miners  so  that  they  cannot  mine  the  metals.  The  real 
conservation  of  metals  is  to  see  that  the  entire  metallic  contents  of 
the  ore  mined  is  saved  and  put  into  form  where  it  is  practically 
indestructible  for  all  time. 

If  the  Federal  Bureau  of  Mines  shall  lead  the  way  in  solving 
these  important  existing  problems  of  the  metal  mining  industry,  it 
will  thereby  increase  the  general  prosperity  of  the  mining  states, 
promote  the  welfare  of  the  principal  industries  throughout  all  the 
states,  and  effect  a  tremendous  saving  in  the  permanent  wealth  of 
our  country. 


Portland  Cement  and  Cement  Resources  of  the  Southern  States. 

BY    T.     POOLE    MAYNARD,* 
ATLANTA,   GEORGIA. 


The  first  Portland  cement  mill  established  in  the  South  was 
that  of  the  Virginia  Portland  Cement  Company,  at  Fordwick,  Va., 
in  the  year  1900.  During  the  year  1901,  the  Southern  Cement  Com- 
pany at  North  Birmingham,  Ala.,  began  the  manufacture  of  Port- 
land cement  from  granulated  slag  and  hydrated  lime.  Three  plants 
were  put  into  operation  during  1903 — the  Buckhorn  Portland 
Cement  Company,  in  West  Virginia ;  the  Southern  States  Portland 
Cement  Company,  in  Georgia,  and  the  Texas  Portland  Cement 
Company,  in  Texas.  In  1904,  the  only  plant  in  Kentucky  was 
constructed. 

The  production  of  Portland  cement  in  the  Southern  states 
until  1906  was  practically  negligible.  The  Standard  Portland 
Cement  Company  in  Alabama  was  completed  in  the  year  1906,  and 
during  this  year  seven  mills  produced  1,804,643  barrels,  constitut- 
ing 3-9%  of  the  total  output  in  the  United  States.  During  1907, 
the  Dixie  Portland  Cement  Company  of  Tennessee  and  the  Dewey 
Portland  Cement  Company  in  Oklahoma  were  established,  and 
eight  of  these  plants  produced  1,814,470  barrels,  or  3.7%  of  the 
total  output.  During  1908,  the  Security  Cement  and  Lime  Com- 
pany in  Maryland  and  the  Oklahoma  Portland  Cement  Company  in 
Oklahoma  began  operations,  and  eleven  plants  produced  2,204,840 
barrels,  or  4.3%  of  the  total  output.  During  1909,  the  Southwest- 
ern States  Portland  Cement  Company  in  Texas  was  constructed, 
and  in  this  year  twelve  plants  produced  3,811,498  barrels,  consti- 
tuting 6.1%  of  the  total  output.  During  1910,  the  Atlantic  and 
Gulf  Portland  Cement  Company  in  Alabama,  the  Southwestern 
Cement  Company  in  Texas,  and  the  Norfolk  Portland  Cement  Cor- 
poration in  Virginia  all  began  operations,  so  that  fifteen  plants 
produced  5,717,959  barrels,  or  7.9%  of  the  total  output.  The  Tide- 
water Portland  Cement  Company  in  Maryland,  the  Clinchfield  Port- 
land Cement  Corporation  in  Tennessee,  the  Piedmont  Portland 
Cement  Company  in  Georgia,  and  the  Choctaw  Portland  Cement 
Company  in  Oklahoma  will  all  be  completed  during  1911.  When 
these  mills  are  completed,  together  with  the  increase  in  the  ca- 
pacity of  the  mills  in  the  Southern  states  now  being  operated,  the 


*Assistant  State  Geologist  of  Georgia. 


CEMENT   RESOURCES  OF  THE  SOUTHERN   STATES.     209 

daily  capacity  of  the  Southern  mills  will  be  44,880  barrels,  so.  that 
the  annual  capacity  will  be  more  than  16,000,000  barrels. 

Maryland  has  two  plants ;  Virginia,  two ;  West  Virginia,  one ; 
Kentucky,  one ;  Tennessee,  two ;  Georgia,  two ;  Alabama,  three ; 
Oklahoma,  three,  and  Texas,  four.  Missouri  has  four  plants,  and  in 
the  year  1909  the  value  of  Portland  cement  produced  in  this  State 
amounted  to  more  than  two  and  one-half  million  dollars.  How- 
ever, according  to  the  distribution  of  plants  by  the  United  States 
Geological  Survey,  Missouri  is  included  along  with  those  of  the 
Central  states. 

Geographic  Location  of  Cement  Materials  of  Southern  States. 

Maryland,  Virginia,  North  Carolina,  South  Carolina,  Georgia, 
and  Alabama  occupy  three  distinct  physiographic  provinces,  i.  e.,  the 
Coastal' Plain,  the  Piedmont  Plateau,  and  the  Appalachian  Area. 
This  latter  area  is  subdivided  into  the  Appalachian  Mountains,  the 
Appalachian  Valley,  and  Cumberland  Plateau.  The  cement  ma- 
terials occur  in  both  the  Coastal  Plain  and  in  the  Appalachian  Area, 
while  they  are  seldom  associated  in  the  Piedmont  Plateau.  Each  of 
the  physiographic  provinces  are  characterized  by  distinct  geologic 
formations,  and  it  is  through  a  knowledge  of  stratigraphy,  namely, 
the  study  of  the  lithology  and  the  sequence  of  formations  that  the 
geologist  is  able  to  determine  the  possibilities  in  undeveloped 
regions,  and  to  make  known  the  tonnage  available  in  development, 
which  is  one  of  the  most  important  factors  to  be  taken  into  consid- 
eration in  the  location  of  plants. 

West  Virginia,  Tennesse  and  Kentucky  occupy  portions  of  the 
great  Appalachian  Valley  and  the  Cumberland  Plateau,  and  Ken- 
tucky and  Tennessee  extend  over  into  the  great  Mississippi  Valley. 
Cement  materials  are  found  throughout  these  states. 

Florida,  Mississippi,  Louisiana  and  the  eastern  part  of  Texas 
lie  wholly  in  the  Coastal  Plain,  and  are  characterized  by  rocks  of 
post-Paleozoic  age.  Oklahoma  lies  in  a  separate  physiographic 
province  west  of  the  Mississippi.  The  most  important  cement  ma- 
terials are  found  in  the  Paleozoic.  „ 

The  Geology  of  the  Cement  Materials. 

The  Southern  states  occupy  a  territory  which  is  characterized 
by  a  great  variety  of  calcareous  and  argillaceous  materials  eminently 
suitable  for  use  in  the  manufacture  of  Portland  cement.  The 
prime  factors  to  be  taken  into  consideration  today  in  the  establish- 
ment of  cement  mills  are  (i)  the  location  of  the  raw  materials  in 
close  proximity  with  a  suitable  fuel  supply,  (2)  adequate  transpor- 


210         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

tation  facilities  and  (3)  good  markets.  The  same  factors  have  been 
of  first  importance  in  the  production  of  pig  iron,  and  it  is  on  ac- 
count of  the  association  of  the  raw  materials  with  the  fuel  supply 
that  the  South  occupies  such  a  prominent  position  today  in  the 
manufacture  of  iron  and  steel.  It  will  be  shown  below  that  the 
raw  materials  used  in  the  manufacture  of  Portland  cement,  along 
with  a  suitable  fuel  supply,  occupy  a  greater  area,  and  are  of  greater 
geologic  extent  in  the  South  than  in  any  other  section  of  our 
country. 

The  pre-Cambrian  rocks  have  been  so  altered  from  their 
original  character  through  the  agencies  of  diastrophism  and  meta- 
morphism  that  we  do  not  expect  to  find  materials  contained  in  these 
rocks  which  will  become  available  for  use  in  the  manufacture  of 
Portland  cement.  The  Cambrian  formations  contain  both  lime- 
stones and  shales,  but  on  account  of  the  great  changes  which  have 
taken  place  in  these  rocks  they  are  seldom  available  for  use.  Where 
the  Cambrian  limestones  have  been  recrystallizetl  into  marbles,  re- 
taining their  high  calcium  character,  and  where  the  shales  have 
been  little  altered  chemically,  they  may  be  found  suitable. 

The  Ordovician  was  a  period  of  great  limestone  deposition, 
and  the  argillaceous  limestones  of  the  Ordovician  provide  the  raw 
materials  for  the  greater  quantity  of  the  American  Portland  cement 
produced  today.  During  Silurian  time,  the  deposits  in  the  South- 
ern Appalachians  consisted  essentially  of  shales  and  sandstones. 
In  the  Northern  Appalachians,  rocks  of  more  than  a  mile  in  thick- 
ness constitute  the  next  succeeding  formations  above  the  Silurian, 
namely,  the  Devonian,  and  they  seldom  contain  rocks  suitable  for 
use  in  the  manufacture  of  cement.  This  great  thickness  of  rock 
separates  the  shales  and  limestones  of  the  Silurian  and  the  great 
limestone  deposits  of  the  Ordovician  from  the  overlying  Carbonifer- 
ous, which  contains  the  only  available  fuel  supply.  The  Devonian 
rocks  thin  out  toward  the  South.  The  Carboniferous  rocks  in  the 
South  contain  not  only  the  coal  deposits,  but  also  great  thicknesses 
of  limestone  and  shale  and  lie  almost  immediately  upon  the  shale 
deposits  of  the  Silurian,  and  in  dose  proximity  to  the  limestone 
deposits  of  the  Ordovician.  On  account  of  the  great  thickness  of 
the  Devonian  and  the  scarcity  of  the  cement  materials  in  the 
Carboniferous  in  the  Northern  Appalachians  it  is  readily  seen  why 
plants  have  not  been  located  where  the  raw  materials  are  in  juxta- 
position with  the  coal  deposits,  while  in  the  Southern  Appalachians 
the  cement  materials  of  the  Ordovician  and  Silurian  He  in  close 
proximity  to  the  fuel  supply  contained  in  the  Carboniferous. 


CEMENT   RESOURCES  OE  THE  SOUTHERN   STATES.     211 

Less  is  known  regarding  the  cement  materials  of  the  Coastal 
Plain  than  of  the  other  physiographic  provinces.  Considerable 
stratigraphic  work  has  been  done  in  many  of  the  Southern  States, 
both  by  the  United  States  (  ieological  Survey  and  the  state  sur- 
veys, but  with  a  few  exceptions  detailed  economic  study  of  the 
cement  materials  has  never  been  taken  up.  The  Miocene  marls  and 
Quaternary  clays  are  suitable  for  use  in  the  manufacture  of 
cement  at  many  localities  in  Virginia.  In  Alabama,  the  Selma 
Chalk  and  residual  clays  occur  together,  and  are  known  to  be 
eminently  suitable,  while  in  Texas  calcareous  and  argillaceous  ma- 
terials in  the  upper  Cretaceous  afford  the  source  of  most  of  the 
cements. 

Fuels  of  the  Southern  States. 

The  areas  designated  as  the  Eastern  and  Lehigh  districts  in- 
clude plants  in  Pennsylvania,  New  Jersey,  New  York  and  Massa- 
chusetts. In  this  whole  'area  the  bituminous  coals  underlie  only 
14,200  square  miles,  and  the  coal  fields  are  confined  entirely  to 
Pennsylvania,  and  can  supply  the  Northern  portion  of  the  Southern 
field  as  cheaply  as  the  states  which  lie  to  the  north  of  Pennsylvania. 
The  Southern  states.  are  underlain  by  80,866  square  miles  of  bitu- 
minous coal,  and  the  23,000  square  miles  of  'coal  in  Missouri  is 
within  easy  reach  of  the  Southwestern  states.  The  Central  states 
contain  101,320  square  miles  underlain  by  coal,  including  Mis- 
souri. When  the  location  of  a  mill  in  relation  to  the  fuel  supply  is 
taken  into  consideration  it  is  readily  seen  that  the  South  contains 
an  area  seven  times  as  great  as  that  of  the  Eastern  states,  and  as 
great  an  area  as  the  Central  states.  ^ 

In  Alabama,  Mississippi,  Louisiana  and  Texas  the  lignites 
underlie  broad  areas,  and  they  are  being  extensively  used  in  Texas 
at  the  present  time  as  a  fuel  supply  for  the  manufacture  of  cement. 


The  Value  of  Portland  Cement  in 

The  average  price  per  barrel  of  Portland  cement  in  1910,  ac- 
cording to  the  figures  reported  to  the  United  States  Geological 
Survey  for  gray  Portland  cement  was  88.9  cents  per  barrel,  and 
$2.86  per  barrel  for  white  Portland.  This  represents  the  value  of 
the  cement  in  bulk  at  the  mills  including  the  labor  cost  of  packing, 
but  not  the  value  of  the  sacks  or  barrels. 

The  average  price  of  Portland  cement  in  the  Lehigh  district 
in  1910  was  72.7  cents  per  barrel  ;  in  the  Eastern  states  the  average 
value  was  75.7  cents  per  barrel  ;  in  the  Central  states  the  average 
value  was  91  cents  per  barrel.  In  other  words,  the  Southern  oper- 


212         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN     MIXING    CONGRESS 

ator  receives  21.3  cents  more  per  barrel  for  his  cement  than  the 
operator  in  the  Lehigh  district;  18.3  cents  more  than  the  operator  in 
the  Eastern  states,  and  3  cents  more  than  the  operator  in  the 
Central  states.  It  is  evident  from  the  above  facts  that  the  operator 
who  can  produce  cement  in  the  South  as  cheaply  as  in  the  Lehigh 
district  has  a  considerable  advantage.  The  extreme  Western  states 
have  not  been  discussed,  as  they  are  not  competitors  with  the  plants 
east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains. 

Individual  States. 

Maryland  was  the  first  of  the  Southern  states  to  realize  that 
a  careful  stratigraphic  study  of  her  argillaceous  and  calcareous 
materials  would  be  of  the  greatest  value  in  the  subsequent  investi- 
gation of  her  undeveloped  cement  materials.  It  was  largely,  through 
these  investigations  that  she  has  today  two  Portland  cement  plants. 

Maryland  has  445  square  miles  of  coal.  The  close  proximity 
of  the  calcareous  and  argillaceous  materials  to  one  another  and  to 
a  suitable  fuel  supply,  together  with  her  excellent  railway  and  ocean 
transportation  facilities  to  ready  markets  combine  to  make  her 
ideally  situated  geographically  for  the  distribution  and  cheap  pro- 
duction of  cement. 

Virginia  is  underlain  by  1,900  square  miles  of  coal,  150  square 
miles  of  which  lie  in  the  Richmond  basin,  200  square  miles  in  .Mont- 
gomery County,  and  1,550  square  miles  in  the  Appalachian  area. 
Virginia  is  fortunate  in  having  available  cement  materials  in  the 
Coastal  Plain  in  close  proximity  to  the  coal  deposits  of  the  Triassic. 

West  Virginia  jias  17,000  square  miles  of  bituminous  coal,  be- 
sides great  areas  containing 'gas  and  oil.  The  association  of  the 
raw  materials  with  the  great  fuel  supply  assures  her  a  bright  future. 

Kentucky  is  underlain  by  16,670  square  miles  of  coal,  10,270 
square  miles  of  which  occupies  the  Eastern  Area  and  is  a  part 
of  the  great  Appalachian  field;  6,400  square  miles  of  coal  occurs  in 
the  Western  Area  and  occupies  a  portion  of  the  great  interior 
field.  Little  detailed  knowledge  is-  at  hand  in  regard  to  her  cement 
materials. 

Tennessee  is  underlain  by  4,400  square  miles  of  bituminous 
coal,  and  contains  great  areas  of  limestone  and  shale  in  close 
proximity  with  the  coal  deposits. 

The  investigation  of  the  cement  materials  of  Georgia  is  now 
under  way,  and  the  detailed  economic  study  of  the  whole  of  North 
Georgia  will  be  completed  in  the  spring  of  1912.  The  investiga- 
tion shows  great  quantities  of  cement  materials  in  the  Carbonifer- 


CEMENT  RESOURCES  OF  THE  SOUTHERN  STATES.     213 

ous,  the  Silurian  and  the  Ordovician.  The  coal  fields  of  Georgia 
occupy  167  square  miles,  and  the  coals  of  Tennessee  and  Alabama 
are  available. 

Alabama  has  14,430  square  miles  of  coal  associated  with  suit- 
able limestones  and  shales,  and  the  lignite  deposits  of  her  coastal 
plain  may  make  her  cementing  materials  in  this  area  available. 

Oklahoma  is  underlain  by  10,000  square  miles  of  coal,  besides 
great  quantities  of  oil  and  gas  in  close  proximity  to  her  cement 
materials,  and  with  further  development  in  transportation  facilities 
her  future  in  the  manufacture  of  Portland  cement  will  be  very- 
great. 

Texas  has  8,200  square  miles  underlain  by  bituminous  coal 
and  2,000  square  miles  underlain  by  lignite,  and  is  fortunate  in 
having  the  fuels  associated  with  available  cement  materials. 

North  Carolina,  South  Carolina,  Mississippi  and  Louisiana 
have  no  cement  plants  at  present.  However,  as  the  demand  becomes 
greater  and  the  raw  materials  in  these  states  become  better  known 
development  will  follow. 

It  is  easy  to  draw  conclusions  from  the  facts  presented.  The 
future  development  of  the  cement  industry  depends  on  the  same 
factors  as  that  for  the  manufacture  of  pig  iron  and  steel.  In  no 
other  section  of  the  country  is  there  such  a  vast  area  where  the 
calcareous  and  argillaceous  materials  occur  together  associated  with 
.such  a  great  fuel  supply.  For  this  reason  the  South  is  likely  to 
surpass  all  other  sections  in  the  manufacture  of  Portland  cement. 


Some  Reflections  on  the  Disposal  of  Public  Coal  Lands. 


BY  DR.   JAMES   DOUGLAS, 
NHW    YORK    CITY. 


President  Roosevelt  in  a  message  to  Congress  on  December 
17,  1906,  on  the  subject  of  the  public  land  laws,  says: 

"The  present  coal  law,  limiting  the  individual  entry  to  160  acres, 
puts  a  premium  on  fraud  by  making  it  impossible  to  develop  certain 
types  of  coal  fields  and  yet  comply  with  the  law.  It  is  a  scandal 
to  maintain  laws  which  sound  well,  but  which  make  fraud  the  key 
without  which  great  natural  resources  must  remain  closed." 

Five  years  have  passed  since  then,  but  beyond  indicting  men, 
innocent  and  guilty,  as  malefactors,  and  withdrawing  coal  lands 
from  entry*  and  exploitation,  no  remedy  has  been  applied  which 
would  cure  the  evident  defects  in  the  coal  land  laws.  We  all  know 

«  ^ 

the  particular  provisions  under  which  in  the  past  entrymen  could 
secure  coal  lands  at  a  price  of  $10.00  to  $15.00  per  acre,  depending 
upon  the  distance  of  the  coal  from  a  railroad,  and  the  absurd  re- 
striction of  1 60  acres  of  land,  on  which  coal  was  proved  to  exist, 
to  each  entryman,  and  that  at  the  utmost  only  two  entrymen  could 
combine  to  work  in  common.  It  was  a  crime  under  the  act  for  an 
entryman  to  secure  possession  with  the  intention  of  selling;  though 
of  course  when  the  land  became  his,  under  patent,  he  -could  dispose 
of  it  as  he  might  see  fit. 

In  any  revision  of  the  coal  land  laws,  three  questions  will  have 
to  be  considered: 

First.  The  quantity  which  should  be  allotted  to  a  single  entry- 
man or  corporation. 

Second.  The  terms  under  which  government  should  part  with 
their  coal  resources,  whether  by  out  and  out  sale,  by  lease,  or  on 
payment  of  a  royalty. 

Third.  The  price  which  should  be  paid  either  by  a  purchaser, 
or  a  renter,  or  a  worker  on  royalty. 

The  decision  of  these  questions  is  more  or  less  interdependent. 
If  a  certain  amount  of  coal  must  be  secured  in  advance  to  warrant 
the  expenditure  of  the  capital  necessary  to  mine  the  coal,  and  to 
handle  it  as  coal  or  coke  commercially  when  brought  to  surface, 
and  if  this  outlay  is  to  be  repaid,  with  a  reasonable  rate  of  profit 
to  cover  interest  and  risk,  the  operator  must  start  with  the  pros- 
pect of  a  certain  minimum  supply  of  coal.  What  that  acreage 


DISPOSAL  OF   PUBLIC  COAL  LANDS.  215 

should  be  depends  upon  the  size  of  the  beds,  and  the  initial  outlay 
to  utilize  to  the  best  advantage  the  property. 

In  order  to  get  material  for  discussion  I  will  take  as  data  for 
the  initial  solution  the  production  per  acre  of  coal  and  the  ex- 
penses incurred  in  erecting  the  plant  of  the  Stag  Canon  Fuel  Com- 
pany at  Dawson,  New  Mexico.  The  mines  and  plant  of  the  Stag 
Canon  Fuel  Company  (formerly  the  Dawson  Fuel  Company)  were 
purchased  by  the  present  owners  in  1905.  The  mines  had  been 
opened  in  1902,  and  in  addition  to  the  mine  equipment  a  wooden 
washery  and  125  beehive  ovens  were  erected. 

The  surface  area  of  the  property  owned  by  the  Stag  Canon 
Fuel  Co.  is  52,152  acres.  The  coal  is  assumed  to  underlie  35,028 
acres.  Since  the  mine  was  opened  in  1902  there  have  been  ex- 
tracted 6,981,220  tons  of  coal  from  a  seam  which  varied  in  thick- 
ness from  four  feet  to  seven  feet.  The  area  worked  over  is  960 
acres.  Yet  in  reality  this  coal  has  been  extracted  from  650  acres. 
The  difference  between  650  acres  and  the  total  acreage  worked 
over  represents  unprofitable  ground,  through  faults,  pinching  of 
the  coal  seam  or  decline  in  the  quality  of  coal  below  a  profitable 
margin. 

The  production  of  coal  and  coke  of  the  Dawson  Fuel  company 
and  its  successor,  the  Stag  Canon  Fuel  company,  has  been  as 
follows : 

Year  Tons  Coal  -Tons  Coke 

1902  May  to  Dec 97,840  4,133 

1903    371,774  30,325 

1904     380,664  39,308 

1905     508,008  57,357 

1906    663,142  85,211 

1907     871,101  165,975 

1908    850,318  230,756 

1909     1,032,239  283,964 

1910     1,302,092  298,685 

1911  to  June  30 483,321  129,351 


Totals     6,560,499  1,325,065 

Two  Thousand  Acres  Explored. 

Approximately  2,000  acres  have  been  explored.  One  of  the 
drifts  from  No.  2  entry  extends  for  a  distance  of  one  mile  from 
surface  to  an  air  shaft  from  surface.  In  addition,  two  diamond  drill 
holes  have  been  extended  from  the  surface  through  the  coal  bed. 
One  in  Section  27,  Township  29  North,  Range  20  East,  with  a  depth 
of  217  feet,  shows  only  three  feet  of  coal;  the  other  hole  in  Section 
34,  Township  29  North,  Range  20  East,  at  eighty-three  feet  depth, 
shows  two  feet  and  two  inches  of  coal.  We  have  determined,  there- 


216         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

fore,  that  our  thickest  coal  bed,. adjacent  to  its  outcrop,  has  yielded 
7,350  tons  per  acre ;  that  30%  of  the  ground  worked  over  has  been 
unprofitable,  and  that  boreholes  show  a  decrease  in  thickness  as 
the  principal  seams  extend  under  the  range. 

It  would  probably,  however,  be  fair  to  assume,  from  our  ex- 
periences and  that  of  others,  taking  into  account  the  eventualities 
already  encountered  by  us,  and  the  risks  of  mining  from  explo- 
sions and  other  accidents,  that  as  depth  is  attained  the  quantity 
of  coal  in  this  or  any  large  given  area  of  unexplored  coal  lands 
should  be  reduced  to  one-half  of  its  maximum  proved  quantity,  in 
estimating  its  final  value  and  by  its  production  of  coal.  On  the 
above  assumption,  the  35,000  acres,  multiplied  by  8,000  and  divided 
by  two,  contain  1,400,000,000  tons,  or,  on  a  production  of  1,000,000 
tons  per  year,  140  years'  reserve.  These  lands  were  on  an  old 
Spanish  grant — the  Maxwell.  No  such  quantity  of  land  or  quan- 
tity of  coal  is  needed  to  induce  any  corporation  to  engage  in  coal 
mining.  But  in  the  following  estimate  I  assume  that  50  per  cent 
should  be  deducted  from  the  estimated  coal  contents  of  any  given 
area  of  coal  land,  in  determining  its  value — and  that  ten  thousand 
acres,  or  40  years'  supply  at  1,000,000  tons  per  annum,  is  the 
minimum  which  should  be  allowed  to  a  corporation  willing  to  erect 
safe  and  economical  works  and  equip  its  mines  with  every  known 
safety  appliance. 

Value  of  Coal  in  Situ. 

The  value  of  coal  in  situ  may  be  assumed  to  be  determined  by 
the  royalty  demanded  in  any  given  district  for  coal  to  be  extracted. 
In  Colorado,  uncomplicated  by  store  licenses  and  so  forth,  this  is 
about  eight  (8)  cents  per  ton.  If,  therefore,  an  acre  in  the  Trini- 
dad district  yields  on  an  average  8,000  tons  of  coal,  and  the  royalty 
is  eight  cents  per  ton,  the  gross  value  of  the  coal  in  the  ground  is 
$640  per  acre. 

If  the  coal  were  sold  out  and  out,  the  compound  interest  cal- 
culated on  the  price  of  the  number  of  years  necessary  to  work 
out  an  area  large  enough  to  return  the  purchaser  a  fair  remunera- 
tion for  his  investment,  compensation  for  his  risk,  and  profits  on 
the  enterprise  as  a  business  venture,  must  be  deducted. 

Original  Outlay  Costly. 

The  original  outlay  includes  the  cost  of  his  surface  equipment, 
which  in  the  West,  where  the  government  coal  lands  lie,  must  be 
costly  if  it  is  to  be  efficient. 

Our  experience  at  Dawson  has  been  that  the  cost  of  the  sur- 


DISPOSAL  OF  PUBLIC  COAL  LANDS.  217 

face  plant  of  a  coal  mine  is  by  no  means  a  negligible  quantity. 
The  wooden  tipple  and  wooden  washery,  in  existence  when  we 
bought  the  plant,  were  liable  to  be  burned,  and  both  were  defective 
in  structural  details.  As  our  company  believed  in  the  long  life  of 
the  mines,  it  decided  to  erect  steel  tipples,  with  screens  for  accu- 
rate sizing,  and  a  steel  washery.  The  washery  was  designed  by 
Dr.  Ricketts,  after  visiting  the  best  equipped  coal  mines  in  England 
and  on  the  continent  of  Europe.  But  though  complete  in  itself, 
since  its  erection  it  has  been  found  necessary  to  increase  its  capacity, 
in  certain  departments,  in  order  to  recover  from  the  jig  waste  some 
marketable  coal,  by  further  crushing  and  washing. 

There  being  no  profitable  market  for  by-products,  the  proposal 
to  erect  retort  ovens  was  dismissed.  But  as  we  anticipated  de- 
mands for  power,  besides  those  of  the  mining  company  itself,  446 
und'erflue  ovens  have  been  erected.  As  yet  only  218  discharge  their 
gases  'under  eight  Sterling  boilers  of  300  horsepower  each.  The 
heat  from  each  oven  has  been  proved  to  evaporate  steam  sufficient 
to  generate  ten  boiler  horsepower. 

The  power  plant  comprises  four  cross-compound  Nordberg- 
Corliss  engines  19  and  32  by  36  inches,  direct-coupled  to  alter- 
nating-current generators  of  2,300  volts,  400  kilowatts  each.  The 
four  engines  run  in  parallel. 

The  current  from  the  power  house  is  transmitted  by  insulated 
wires  at  2,300  volts  to  rotary  converters  at  substations,  where  it 
is  converted  from  2,300  volts  alternating  current  to  260  volts  direct 
current. 

There'are  three  substations.  One  at  Lorita,  near  Mine  No.  5, 
which  is  equipped  with  one  2OO-kilowatt  rotary  converter,  260 
volts,  768  amperes.  The  substation  at  Aline  Xo.  4  is  equipped 
with  two  2OO-kilowatt  rotary  converters,  260  volts,  768  amperes. 
The  substation  between  Mines  Nos.  I  and  2  has  an  equipment 
similar  to  that  of  Mine  No.  4. 

Cost  of  Plant. 

The  cost  of  the  plant  already  installed  has-been  as  follows: 

Cost  of  two  steel  tipples   and  one  wooden   one $  82,842.32 

Cost  of  wnshery     426,830.32 

Cost  of  power  plant    277,090.78 

Cost  of  ovens     773,130.85 

Cost  of  yard    tracks,    locomotives,    etc 190,671.13 

Cost  of  subsidiary   equipment,    such    as    pumps,    operated    by 

transmitted   electrical   power,  etc 228,698.83 


Total    $1,979,264.23 

The  item  for  yard  tracks  includes  not  only  a  line  of  railway 
of  three  miles  from  Mines  Nos.  I  and  2,  and  another  of  five  miles 


218         PROCERDIXCS    AMRRTCAN     MTXIXG 

from  Mine  No.  5,  but  some  eleven  miles  of  track  to  serve  the  ovens 
and  handle  and  store  the  coal  and  coke  and  washery  waste.  The 
company  considers  it  better  policy  to  own  its  own  yards  than  to 
allow  any  railroad  to  approach  its  mines  and  tipples  and  thus  de- 
prive itself  of  the  possibility  of  competition  in  transportation. 

I  have  not  included  the  cost  of  workmen's  houses,  amusement 
hall,  hospital,  schools,  and  so  forth,  as  these  are  necessary  accom- 
paniments o-f  every  well-equipped  western  coal  mine ;  and  some 
of  them  are  expected  to  return  revenue.  The  plant  may  seem  to 
have  been  needlessly  expensive.  But  having  suffered  from  fire 
during  our  own  short  experience  and  anticipating  a  long  life  for 
our  mines,  we  built  of  incombustible  material. 

However,  taking  the  above  facts  and  arguing  on  the  above 
assumptions,  we  reach  the '  following  conclusion  : 

Estimated  value  of  coal  land  based  on  one  acre  of  land  containing  8,000 
tons  of  coal. 

10,000    acres    land    containing 80,000,000     tons  coal 

Deduct.  50%  for  risk  of  mining,  land  will  yield 40,000,000      tons  coal 

Net  yield   per  acre 4,000     tons  coal 

Royalty  per  ton 8  cts. 

Royalty  per   acre $320 

Number  of  tons  mined  per  year 1,000,000   tons 

Years   to    exhaust. .  40 


Total  Per  ton  coal 

10,000  acres  @  $320.00  acre $3,200,000  =          8        cts. 

Cost    of  plant 1,979,264  =          4.94  cts. 

Interest  on  plant  investment  @   5%   per  an- 
num equals  $98,963  per  year  for  40  years  3,958,520  =          9.90  cts. 


Total    Cost    $9,137.784  =        22.84  cts. 


Payment   of  10,000  acres   in   advance. 

One  dollar  compounded  at  6%  per  annum  for  40  years $10.29 

Royalty  of  $320.00  -r  $10.29  equals  present  worth  per  acre 31.10 

Total  Per  ton  coal 

10,000  acres  @  $31.10  per  acre $    311,000  0.78  cts. 

Cost    of    plant 1,979,264  4.94  cts. 

Interest  on  plant  investment   (a    5%   per  an- 
num equals  $98,963  per  year  for  40  years  3,958,520  9.90  cts. 


Total    Cost $6,248,784  15.62  cts. 

Fi.ved  Changes  Should  Be  Taken  Into  Account. 

In  determining  the  cost  of  coal  the  fixed  charges — in  this  case 
estimated  at  15.62  cents  per  ton — should  be  taken  into  account  as 
well  as  the  operating  charges.  Inasmuch  as  the  plant  has  to  be 
maintained  in  perfect  working  order  till  the  exhaustion  of  the 
mines,  it  seems  to  me  that  the  cost,  as  well  as  the  interest  on  the 
cost,  generally  represented  by  interest  on  a  bonded  debt,  should  be 
included  in  the  fixed  charges.  This  certainly  should  be  done  unless 
it  is  extinguished  by  a  sinking  fund  during  the  life  of  the  mine. 


DISPOSAL  OF  PUBLIC  COAL  LANDS.  219 

• 

The  past  cost  of  producing  and  marketing  coal,  as  compared 
with  the  future  cost,  is  not  the  subject  of  the  present  discussion; 
but  I  cannot  resist  referring  to  two  items  which  must  hereafter 
make  it  notably  higher  than  it  has  been.  We  have  been  attacking 
the  outcrop  of  our  coal  seams,  and  avoiding  deep  mining.  With 
such  stupendous  resources  this  has  been  possible  and  perhaps  pru- 
dent, but  we  are  reaching  a  period  when  this  very  economical  pro- 
cedure must  cease,  and  we,  arid  the  public  which  we  serve,  must 
pay  for  the  fuel  the  difference  between  the  cost  of  robbing  the  out- 
crop and  mining  at  a  mile  or  more  under  cover.  Moreover,  the 
public  very  properly  demands  that  our  ratio  of  deaths  and  of  acci- 
dents shall  approach  that  of  foreign  mines.  It  has  been  admittedly 
high,  and  will  continue  to  be  high,  despite  all  precautions.  Not 
only  is  our  labor  less  skilled  than  that  of  the  old  coal  districts  of 
Europe,  but  it  is  more  greedy  of  gain  and  more  or  less  infected  by 
the  American  spirit  of  risk,  which  makes  all  of  us  willing  to  im- 
peril our  lives  by  rushing  across  the  street  before  a  motor  or  a 
street  car  rather  than  lose  a  second  while  it  passes  us.  The  instruc- 
tions given  to  the  miner  by  the  foreman  to  put  in  a  prop  are  de- 
liberately disobeyed  because  the  miner  prefers  risking  his  life  to 
foregoing  the  extraction  of  half  a  ton  of  coal. 

It  is  because  of  this  tendency  that  we  must  alter  our  methods, 
though  the  alterations  increase  the  cost  of  coal.  This  increase  is 
estimated  at  from  8  to  10  cents  per  ton.  It  must  cover  increased 
supervision  to  enforce  the  observance  of  rules,  electric  firing,  sepa- 
rate manways,  where  electric  or  compressed  air  transportation  is 
employed ;  more  perfect  and  durable  systems  of  supporting  the 
roof,  sprinkling  and  spraying  to  reduce  the  danger  of  explosion, 
and  other  admitted  improvements  which  are  being  adopted  without 
government  compulsion  and  likely  to  be  made  compulsory.  Add 
this  to  the  fixed  charges,  and  the  sum  means  either  heavy  loss  to 
the  operator  or  increased  price  to  the  consumer. 

Alternatives  Open  to  Government. 

But  to  return  to  the  more  immediate  subject  of  my  address, 
the  other  alternatives  open  to  government  for  the  disposal  of  its 
coal  lands  are  the  rental  or  the  royalty  systems.  From  colonial 
times  actual  ownership  has  been  preferred  to  renting.  The  ex- 
periment of  renting  the  mineral  lands  was  tried  and  abandoned 
in  the  early  days  of  Lake  Superior  mining,  but  renting  was  the 
Spanish  method  and  still  works  well  in  Mexico  and  in  South  Amer- 
ica, where  no  limit  is  set  to  the  quantity  of  mineral, land  which  can 
be  acquired  by  a  single  lessor. 


220         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

If  the  government  should  lease  the  coal,  reserving  the  sur- 
face rights,  and  the  same  requirements  as  to  initial  outlay  were 
either  imposed  or  voluntarily  acquiesced  in,  the  rental  being  a  mere 
annual  payment  and  not  imposed  on  the  producer  in  advance,  would 
be  calculated  on  the  acreage  value  of  the  coal,  exclusive  of  the 
deductions  for  discount.  - 

But  in  considering  the  other  alternatives,  viz.,  allowing  the 
coal  to  be  mined  on  royalty  or  rental,  objections  may  be  raised 
against  both  systems.  If  eight  cents  a  ton  be  a  fair  valuation  of 
coal  in  the  ground,  the  government  would  seemingly  get  all  it  was 
entitled  to  by  accepting  that  amount ;  but  under  this  system  the 
miner  has  every  inducement  to  mine  cheaply  and  thus  wastefully, 
and  to  rob  the  mine  of  its  best  and  more  profitable  coal. 

Under  the  rental  system,  which  could  be  based  on  the  calcula- 
tion of  the  coal  in  a  given  area,  less  the  deductions  we  have  above 
made,  the  lessor,  as  he  approached  the  period  of  exhaustion,  would 
be  paying  an  exorbitant  figure  on  the  balance  of  value  and  would 
be  inclined  to  evade  payment. 

Would  not  a  fair  system  be  to  charge  a  small  rental  on  the 
total  area  and  a  reduced  royalty  on  the  coal  extracted?  Assuming 
10,000  acres  to  be  the  required  area  and  eight  cents  per  ton  to  be  a 
fair  royalty,  would  not  a  rental  of  say  $1.00  per  acre  on  the  gross 
acreage,  or  say  $10,000  per  annum,  and  four  or  five  cents  per  ton 
royalty,  be  equitable?  This  would  secure  to  the  miner  his  neces- 
sary reserves  and  give  to  the  government  the  value  of  the  coal 
in  situ. 

The  above  suggestions  are  thrown  out  as  subjects  for  dis- 
cussion ;  but  the  conclusion  forces  itself  strongly  on  our  conviction 
that  if  a  satisfactory  revision  of  our  land  laws  is  to  be  reached, 
the  farmer,  the  miner,  the  lumberman  and  the  banker  must  be 
consulted  before  the  politician  acts.  The  coal  miner  alone  kno\vs 
the  conditions  and  restrictions  under  which  coal  can  be  extracted 
with  safety  to  the  workman,  with  profit  to  the  operator  and  justice 
to  the  public ;  the  metal  miner  and  the  mining  engineer  alone  ap- 
preciate the  impossibility  of  literally  living  up  to  the  letter  of  the 
old  mining  law,  and  the  lumberman  is  certainly  entitled  to  be  heard 
before  such  sweeping  judgments  are  passed  upon  him  as  we  have 
heard  pronounced  of  late  years.  Representatives  -of  all  the  in- 
terests who  actually  occupy  the  public  lands  should  sit  upon  a 
committee  to  suggest  revision  of  the  laws  affecting  the  sale  and 
the  use  of  the  public  lands  after  sale,  if  such  amended  laws  are  to 
be  practically  applicable. 


Condition  of  the  Coal  Mining  Industry  of  Oklahoma. 


BY  JAAIKS    KLrLIOT, 
.MA  LESTER,    OKLA. 


This  subject  has  been  so  thoroughly  and  ably  covered  by  Mr. 
Bush  that  I  do  not  think  that  it  will  be  possible  for  me  to  shed  any 
additional  light  on  the  subject,  other  than  that  which  pertains  to 
Oklahoma,  to  which  field  my  labors  have  been  almost  entirely  con- 
fined as  an  operator  of  coal  mines.  It  might  be  well  to  state  here, 
however,  that  my  first  experience  in  this  line  of  business  was  that 
of  a  miner,  not  an  operator. 

Oklahoma  is  one  of  the  few  states  in  which  the  individual  coal 
operator  is  still  in  existence,  owing  to  the  fact  that  it  is  one  of  the 
new  states  of  the  Union,  and  to  a  large  extent,  under  Government 
supervision,  which  has  made  it  almost  impossible  for  strong  com- 
binations to  form.  The  capital  invested  in  the  business,  therefore, 
in  comparison  with  that  invested  in  other  fields,  is  vastly  less, 
owing  to  the  fact  that  there  is  very  little  or  no  capital  invested  in 
coal  lands,  most  of  it  being  expended  in  machinery  and  equipment. 
Our  coal  lands,  unlike  those  of  other  states,  are  the  property  of  the 
Indians  and  are  leased  to  the  various  coal  companies  by  the  United 
States  Government,  in  tracts  of  nine  hundred  sixty  acres  each,  on  a 
royalty  of  eight  cents  per  ton  run-of-mine  basis.  The  capital  in- 
vested in  machinery  and  equipment  throughout  the  state  (which  I 
estimate  to  be  'about  five  million  five  hundred  thousand  dollars) 
is  small,  which  is  accounted  for  by  the  fact  that  under  the  terms 
of  the  lease,  all  property,  with  the  exception  of  the  machinery  and 
tools,  reverts  back  to  the  Indian  Nations  at  the  expiration  of  the 
leases.  Elaborate  plants  for  the  mining  and  undercutting  of  coal 
are  rarely  installed,  owing  to  the  fact  that  in  many  cases  machines 
are  impractical,  owing  to  the  heavy  pitch  of  the  coal  veins,  and  in 
cases  where  machines  are  practical,  the  small  differential  of  from 
eleven  to  fourteen  cents  granted  to  the  operator  by  the  Union  min- 
ers, along  with  their  prejudices  against  them,  has  not  warranted 
their  installation. 

The  amount  of  capital  invested  in  machinery  and  equipment 
for  one  hundred  tons  daily  production,  varies  from  ten  thousand 
to  fifty  thousand  dollars  and  depends  entirely  upon  local  conditions, 
which  are  varied,  being  regulated  by  the  pitch  and  thickness  of  the 
vein,  general  roof  and  bottom  conditions,  pumping,  haulage,  etc. 


222         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

In  treating  on  the  subject  of  the  cost  per  ton  for  the  last  year, 
it  will  be  necessary  for  me  to  sub-divide  the  state  of  Oklahoma  into 
four  districts,  in  accordance  with  the  terms  of  our  wage  scale,  and 
the  character  of  the  coal,  which  are,  namely :  Henryetta,  Coalgate, 
Bokoshe  and  McAlester.  The  quality  varies  from  low  grade  bitu- 
minous in  one  of  these  districts,  to  very  high  grade  bituminous  in 
another,  still  another  district  producing  a  semi-bituminous  grade 
commonly  known  as  semi-anthracite,  or  Arkansas  quality.  The  cost 
of  production,  mine  run  basis,  ranges  from  a  minimum  of  one 
dollar  and  forty  cents  in  the  semi-bituminous  in  the  Bokoshe  field, 
to  a  maximum  of  two  dollars  and  fifty  cents  in  the  McAlester 
district. 

Our  average  cost  per  ton  for  the  last  five  years  has  ranged, 
approximately,  from  one  dollar  and  thirty  cents  to  two  dollars  and 
forty  cents,  depending  upon  the  district,  and  has  been  steadily  in- 
creasing, owing  to  the  advance  in  wages  granted  to  labor ;  the 
increased  cost  of  material  and  supplies ;  the  competition  of  oil  and 
gas,  and  the  introduction  of  foreign  coals  into  our  natural  market. 
.  As  stated  above,  the  cost  of  mining  a  ton  of  coal  in  Oklahoma 
has  ranged  from  one  dollar  and  thirty  cents  to  two  dollars  and 
forty  cents  per  ton,  eighty-eight  and  one-half  to  ninety  per  cent  of 
which  has  been  paid  out  to  labor,  the  remaining  ten  to  eleven  and 
one-half  per  cent  being  paid  out  for  material,  supplies,  etc.  The 
cost  of  administration,  which  includes  offices,  salaries,  office,  ex- 
penses and  selling  costs,  for  last  year  amounts  approximately  to 
twenty  cents  per'  ton.  For  a  period  of  five  years  this  cost  has 
ranged  from  fifteen  to  twenty  cents  per  ton. 

The  average  selling  price  at  the  mines  for  the  year  1910 
ranged  from  one  dollar  and  fifty  cents  in  the  Bokoshe  field  to  two 
dollars  and  sixty  cents  per  ton  in  the  McAlester  field.  For  the  past 
five  years  the  same  average  price  has  prevailed,  with  the  exception 
of  the  year  1907,  when  for  a  short  period  the  prices  ranged  from 
one  dollar  and  thirty-five  cents  to  two  dollars  and  fifty  cents. 

In  estimating  the  increased  cost  necessary  to  safeguard  the 
lives  of  the  miners,  as  demanded  by  the  public  at  large,  I  will  ac- 
knowledge that  I  do  not  think,  if  wise  and  uniform  laws  were  to  be 
enacted  and  enforced,  that  there  would  be  any  increased  cost  in 
connection  therewith ;  in  fact  I  am  of  the  opinion  that  there  would 
be  a  considerable  saving  in  the  Oklahoma  field.  The  great  diffi- 
culty we  have  had  to  contend  with  was  the  failure  on  the  part  of 
the  state  legislature,  in  enacting  the  mining  laws  of  Oklahoma, 
to  co-operate  or  discuss  a  single  section  of  the  present  law  with  the 


COAL  MIN1\(,    INDUSTRY   np  OKLAHOMA,  223 

operators,  consequently  our  mining  laws  are  inadequate  and  im- 
possible of  enforcement.  They  bear  little  or  no  relation  to  the 
field  in  particular,  being  a  conglomeration  of  the  most  radical 
mining  laws  of  other  states.  If  more  uniform  and  practical  laws 
could  be  enacted,  and  some  basis  of  uniform  taxation,  along  the  line 
of  that  recently  adopted  in  the  state  of  Washington,  in  full  settle- 
ment of  personal  injury  cases,  I  am  satisfied  there  would  be  con- 
siderable saving  in  the  cost  of  producing  a  ton  of  coal. 

Under  the  present  system  of  mining  in  Oklahoma,  the  recovery 
of  the  entire  vein  worked  is  not  in  excess  of  fifty-five  per  cent.  This 
is  due  to  the  extravagant  system  of  room  and  pillar  mining  adopted 
in  this  field,  and  up  to  this  time  permits  of  no  change,  owing  to 
unfavorable  labor  conditions. 

As  I  have  stated  above,  there  is  little  or  no  capita.1  invested  by 
the  operators  in  coal  lands  in  Oklahoma,  therefore  it  has  not  been 
customary  to  carry  an  item  of  depreciation  in  reference  to  the 
leases.  While  the  prices  received  for  coal  in  this  field  may  seem, 
high  to  the  members  of  this  convention,  they  must  bear  in  mind  that 
our  working  time  is  confined  to  six  months  of  the  year, — the  aver- 
age mine  not  running  more  than  from  one  hundred  to  one  hundred 
twenty  days,  consequently  our  cost  of  production  and  the  price 
received  per  ton  of  mine  run  coal  is  greatly  in  excess  of  that  of 
neighboring  states  where  operating  and  marketing  conditions  are 
much  more  favorable.  In  order  to  meet  expenses  of  operation  and 
to  make  a  fair  return  on  the  capital  invested,  our  coal  should  bring 
from  one  dollar  and  sixty-five  cents  to  two  dollars  and  eighty-five 
cents  per  ton  of  mine  run  coal. 

Owing  to  the  adverse  market  conditions  existing  in  Oklahoma, 
over  forty  per  cent  of  our  coal  is  necessarily  sold  below  cost  to 
the  various  railroad  companies  of  the  southwest.  This  is  done 
for  the  purpose  of  keeping  our  mines  open  during  the  summer 
months,  and  to  enable  us  to  meet  the  winter  demands. 

In  conclusion,  it  is  my  opinion  that  if  uniform  laws  could  be 
adopted  throughout  the  United  States,  covering  the  operation  of 
mines,  the  relationship  between  employer  and  employe,  relating  to 
terms  of  employment,  a  workmen's  compensation  law,  and  a  Na- 
tional Board  of  arbitration  to  settle  disputes,  I  am  satisfied,  Mr. 
Chairman  and  Gentlemen,  that  it  would  operate  to  the  benefit,  not 
only  of  the  miner  and  operator,  but  to  the  country  at  large. 


The  Economics  of  the  Coal  Industry. 


BY   W.    L.    ABBOTT. 
CHICAGO,   ILLINOIS. 


Prospectors  are  said  to  have  great  faith  in  the  blind  chance 
which  leads  the  tenderfoot  in  the  selection  of  the  spot  where  he 
first  strikes  his  pick  into  the  ground  to  -develop  a  profitable  mine, 
and  I  presume  it  is  because  of  my  ignorance  of  the  subject  that  I 
was  invited  here  this  afternoon  to  discuss  the  economics  of  the 
coal  business.  If  any  of  you  would  have  an  opportunity  to  arrest 
a  policeman  who  has  pinched  you  for  speeding,  or  to  treat  the  teeth 
of  the  dentist  who  has  given  you  many  unpleasant  hours  in  his 
chair,  you  may  appreciate  one  of  the  reasons  why  I  accepted  the 
invitation.  (Laughter.) 

For  twenty-seven  years  or  so  I  have  bought  and  burned  coal 
for  electric 'lighting,  and  J  have  come  to  be  firmly  convinced  that 
the  profits  of  that  business  would  be  considerable  were  it  not  for 
the  great  amount  of  the  gross  income  which  we  have  to  turn  over 
to  the  man  who  furnishes  us  the  coal.  (Laughter.)  Because  of 
that  fact  I  don't  think  that  I  can  discuss  the  question  from  your 
viewpoint.  I,  therefore,  will  not  try  to  do  so,  but  will  discuss  the 
question  from  the  viewpoint  of  the  consumer. 

The  term  "Coal  Baron"  was  coined  several  years  ago,  and 
from  the  fact  that  it  is  now  falling  somewhat  into  disuse  we 
may  assume  that  had  it  not  been  coined  when  it  was,  it  never 
would  have  been.  Why  is  it  that  with  cheaper  methods  of  pro- 
duction and  with  expanding  markets  and  prices  generally  on  the 
increase  that  the  coal  operator  is  neither  happy  nor  prosperous. 
This  is  a  question  which  capitalists  and  coal  operators  are  asking. 
I  .don't  know  that  I  have  a  solution  for  the  question,  but  some 
circumstances  have  come  under  my  observation  which  probab'ly 
have  a  bearing  on  it. 

In  the  summer  of  1902  the  anthracite  coal  strike  was  on.  The 
effect  of  that  long  drawn  out  struggle  was,  as  you  know,  to  create 
an  apprehension  that  there  would  be  a  great  shortage  of  coal  during 
the  following  winter.  The  coal  operators  were  not  at  all  slow 
to  seize  upon  this  condition  to  stamp'ede  the  market.  The  prices 
went  soaring  to  unprecedented  height,  and  their  profits  likewise. 
Many  of  these  operators,  as  is  customary,  had  a  great  portion  of 
their  production  tied  up  in  contracts.  Some  of  these  contracts,  be  it 


THE  ECONOMICS  OF  THE  COAL  INDUSTRY.  225 

said  with  credit  to  the  operators,  were  religiously  kept;  others, 
however,  were  cast  to  the  winds.  I  remember  an  incident  -in  my 
own  experience  with  an  operator  with  whom  I  had  contracted  for  a 
number  of  years,  and  whose  deliveries  had  been  in  the  main  satis- 
factory. I  began  to  have  trouble  in  getting  the  deliveries  pre- 
scribed in  his  contract.  This  he  laid  to  one  cause  and  another.  First 
there  was  an  accident  in  the  mine;  then  there  was  an  election,  then 
there  was  a  holiday,  then  there  was  another  day  to  sober  up;  but 
most  of  all  he  couldn't  get  cars  from  the  railroads  to  keep  the  mine 
running.  I  finally  sent  a  man  to  the  mine  to  watch  conditions  there, 
and  learned  that  he  was  getting  cars  and  the  mine  was  running 
regularly,  but  someone  else  was  getting  the  coal.  Armed  with  these 
facts  I  went  to  his  office  and  forced  him  into  the  corner,  where- 
upon he  good  naturedly  laid  aside  all  further  pretense  and  answered 
in  about  these  words :  "Abbott,  I  have  sold  my  mine,  to  be  delivered 
next  April.  I  am  making  $2,400  a  day,  and  I  don't  care  a  d — m." 
Well,  I  don't  know  what  the  effect  would  be  on  me  if  it  were  $2,400 
a  day  profit  on  one  hand  and  a  mere  business  promise  on  the  other 
hand,  but  I  know  the  strain  would  at  least  be  very  great,  and  so  it 
was  with  many  other  operators. 

Following  the  season  of  prosperity  during  the  winter  of  1902 
and  1903  came  a  long  period  of  depression,  four  very  lean  years, 
during  which  the  operators  were  looking  backward  to  the  golden 
harvest  that  had  been  and  forward  to  a  similar  harvest  which  they 
hoped  would  be.  The  occasion  came  preceding  the  end  of  the 
biennial  agreement  with  the  mine  workers,  a  period  which  termi- 
nated with  March,  1906.  During  the  preceding  winter  the  coal 
market  was  again  stampeded  with  tales  that  there  was  going  to 
be  a  great  coal  shortage,  and  the  prospective  shortage  in  April, 
through  some  psychological  process  which  was  worked  with  great 
success,  was  made  to  raise  prices  in  the  preceding  December,  and 
for  three  months  the .  operators  again  reveled  in  prosperity.  This 
stratagem  was  so  successful  that  it  was  worked  again  two  years 
later,  and  now  the  same  specter  is  being  groomed  for  an  encore  dur- 
ing the  coming  winter. 

The  immediate  result  of  these  high  coal  prices  has  been  to 
increase  the  amount  of  capital  invested,  the  number  of  mines,  and 
the  mining  cost.  The  ultimate  result,  however,  has  been  to  decrease 
the  profits  of  the  business,  the  output  of  Illinois  mines,  the  tonnage 
of  coal  produced  per  man,  and  his  average  annual  wage.  Such  has 
been  the  effect  of  the  biennial  raids  on  coal  business  by  labor,  if  not 
acquiesced  in,  at  least  taken  advantage  of  by  the  operators  as  an 


226         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN     MIXING    CONGRESS 

opportunity  to  in  turn  raid  the  consumer.  The  operator  has  had  a 
three  months'  spree,  followed  by  twenty-one  painful  months  of 
sobering  up.  In  the  end  he  finds  that  over  the  entire  period  he  has 
lost  money,  and  his  business  nistead  of  being  one  of  conservative 
and  continuous  profit  is  subject  to  short  periods  of  high  freshets 
and  long  periods  of  exceeding  low  water,  and  all  because  of  an 
apparent  inclination  on  the  part  of  the  operator  to  raid  his  cus- 
tomer under  cover  of  labor  disturbances,  rather  than  to  protect  the 
customer  and  the  coal  business  generally  from  such  onslaughts. 

It  is  easy  to  suggest  a  remedy,  but  to  carry  it  out  is  quite 
another  matter.  It  seems  to  me,  however,  that  no  relief  is  possible 
until  the  operators  are  able  to  control  their  labor,  which  will  not 
be  until  they  are  able  to  control  themselves,  and  this  will  only 
come  to  pass  with  extensive  combinations  which  will  eliminate 
small  interests  and  result  in  large  holdings,  making  it  possible  to 
effect  a  strong  organization  able  to  dominate  the  coal  business 
and  deal  with  labor  on  something  like  equal  and  equitable  terms; 
and  if  the  history  of  the  petroleum  business  is  any  criterion,  the 
for  capital  and  for  labor  and,  greatest  of  all,  for  the  consumer, 
greater  and  more  powerful  this  combination,  the  better  it  will  be 

I  thank  you,  gentlemen,  for  your  kind  attention.     (Applause.) 


The  Operation  of  the  Mine-Run  Law  in  Arkansas. 

BY  DR.  A.  H.  PURDUE, 
FAYETTEVILLE,  ARKANSAS. 


It  was  not  until  I  was  ready  to  take  the  train  for  this  Congress 
that  a  program  reached  me  bringing  the  first  information  that  I 
was  expected  to  present  a  paper  on  Conservation  in  the  Coal  In- 
dustry. Because  of  the  brevity  of  the  time  for  preparation,  I  shall 
take  the  liberty  of  deviating  somewhat  from  the  'subject  assigned 
me  and  confine  my  statements  to  a  single  phase  of  conservation  in 
the  coal  industry  with  which  I  happen  to  be  familiar — the  one  in- 
cluded under  what  is  known  as  the  mine-run  law.  Furthermore,  I 
must  limit  myself  to  the  operations  of  the  mine-run  law  in  Arkan- 
sas, for  I  know  but  little  of  its  results  in  other  states. 

Somewhat  more  than  two  years  ago,  the  Geological  Commis- 
sion of  Arkansas  directed  me  as  State  Geologist  to  have  prepared 
a  report  on  coal-mining  in  the  state.  The  work  of  the  report  was 
entrusted  to  A. .A.  Steel,  Professor  of  Mining  in  the  University  of 
Arkansas.  While  I  do  not  wish  to  shirk  any  of  the  responsibility 
for  the  statements  herein  contained,  all  fairness  requires  me  to  say 
that  they  are  compiled  from  the  report  by  Professor  Steel.  This 
report,  when  completed,  will  be  comprehensive,  and  though  its 
organization  does  not  indicate  such,  it  treats  the  subject  of  coal 
mining  in 'its  relation  to  the  engineer,  the  miner,  the  operator,  the 
public  and  the  state.  In  the  course  of  his  work  in  collecting  data 
for  the  report,  Professor  Steel  visited,  and  was  in  practically  every 
coal  mine  within  the  state  of  Arkansas,  and  talked  with  scores  of 
miners  and  most  of  the  operators.  He  is  one  of  our  most  careful, 
honest,  competent  and  painstaking  observers. 

The  mine-run  law  was  passed  in  Arkansas  in  1905,  and  as  the 
conditions  brought  about  by  its  operation  are  probably  the  most 
vital  of  any  that  relate  to  the  present  condition  of  the  coal  mining 
industry  in  the  state,  we  offer  no  apology  for  having  devoted  one 
chapter  of  54  pages  of  the  report  to  this  subject.  I  shall  not  im- 
pose upon  your  patience  by  entering  upon  a  detailed  treatment  of 
this  important  phase  of  the  coal  mining  industry  in  my  state,  but 
shall  content  myself  by  touching  upon  some  of  the  most  salient 
points. 

It  might  be  well  to  state  in  this  connection,  for  the  benefit  of 
those  not  familiar  with  coal-mining  methods,  that  what  is  known 


228         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

as  the  mine-run  law  provides  that  the  miner  shall  be  paid  for  all 
coal,  both  lump  and  slack,  taken  from  the  mine.  Before  the  enact- 
ment of  the  law  in  Arkansas,  the  miners  in  that  state  were  paid 
wholely  or  largely  on  the  screened  coal  basis,  and  the  great  argu- 
ment in  favor  of  the  law  was,  that  not  being  paid  for  the  slack, 
the  miners  were  giving  the  operators  a  marketable  product.  While 
this  argument  appears  valid,  it  really  is  not  sound,  as  applied  to 
conditions  in  Arkansas,  for  a  simple  arithmetical  computation 
shows  that  the  competent  miner  could  make  more  money  on  the 
screened  coal  basis  at  the  rates  paid  for  that,  than  he  can  on  the 
present  mine-run  rates. 

Another  argument  in  favor  of  the  mine-run  law  in  our  state 
was  that  the  screen  often  let  lumps  through  into  the  slack,  thus 
robbing  the  miner.  In  some  instances,  the  operators  may,  through 
carelessness,  have  let  this  occur,  but  the  difference  between  the  sell- 
ing price  of  the  slack  and  that  of  the  lump  coal  at  the  mine  is  so 
great,  that  it  is  decidedly  to  the  interest  of  the  operator  to  pass  all 
the  lump  coal  over  the  screen. 

Probably  the  most  vital  argument  in  favor  of  the  mine-run  law 
is  that  if  the  miners  are  paid  for  only  lump  coal,  they  will  leave  a 
great  deal  of  slack  in  the  mine  as  a  permanent  loss  of  a  natural 
resource.  But  in  Arkansas,  only  a  small  amount  of  slack  was  left 
in  the  mines  for  the  reason  that  the  coal  is  loaded  with  the  shovel, 
and  is  shoveled  up  from  the  floor. 

The  operation  of  the  mine-run  law  in  Arkansas  furnishes  a  fine 
example  of  the  evils  that  may  follow  legalizing  a  practice  which  on 
its  face  appears  equable.  No  miner  or  operator  has  ever  looked 
fully  into  the  results  of  the  law,  for  it  is  impracticable  for  either  to 
have  done  so.  Such  investigations  can  best  be  conducted  through 
the  agency  of  a  public  bureau,  and  this  fact  supplied  the  Geological 
Survey  of  Arkansas  the  reason  for  taking  it  up  as  a  part  of  the  coal- 
mining investigations. 

One  noticeable  result  in  the  operation  of  the  law  in  Arkansas 
is  an  increase  in  the  per  cent  of  slack.  That  such  has  been  true  is 
recognized  by  both  miners  and  operators.  Investigations  by  the 
Geological  Survey  go  to  show  that  this  has  been  very  great,  reach- 
ing more  than  14  per  cent  from  1906  to  1910.  Were  all  miners  men 
of  high  ethical  ideas,  this  would  not  have  been  true,  for  each  miner 
would  then  have  continued  to  produce  the  maximum  amount  of 
lump  coal,  though  he  was  receiving  as  much  for  the  slack  as  the 
lump;  but  miners  are  ^  like  other  people.  They  are  not  all  honest, 
and  some  of  them  are  not  only  dishonest,  but  lazy.  It  is  easier  to 


THE  MINE-RUN  LAW  IN  ARKANSAS.  229 

mine  coal  with  a  large  per  cent  than  with  a  small  per  cent  of  slack. 
So  the  dishonest,  lazy  fellow  yields  to  the  temptation  to  put  in  heavy 
charges  of  powder  without  first  undermining  the  coal,  rather  than 
to  undermine  and  then  loosen  the  face  with  light  charges.  In  other 
words,  he  conserves  his  energy  at  the  expense  of  his  powder.  The 
extent  to  which  this  physical  conservation  may  reach,  is  shown  in 
the  case  of  two  mines  in  the  same  district  in  one  of  which  the  coal 
was  undermined  before  shooting,  and  in  the  other  it  was  shot  with- 
out undermining.  The  proportion  of  powder  used  in  the  two  cases 
was  as  I  to  5.8.  That  is,  5.8  times  as  much  powder  was  used  in  the 
latter  case  as  would  have  been  used  had  the  coal  been  properly 
mined.  It  also  means  that  the  excess  of  powder  energy  went 
toward  producing  slack. 

It  is  often  remarked  by  those  not  conversant  with  the  details 
of  the  industry  that  the  slack  is  not  lost  either  to  the  operators 
or  the  public,  for  the  reason  that  it  is  sold.  This  is  true ;  but  slack 
in  Arkansas  brings  from  95  cents  to  $1.50  less  per  ton  than  lump, 
so  that  all  slack  that  had  as  well  be  put  on  the  market  as  lump 
represents  so  much  loss  to  the  operator. 

But  the  loss  is  not  to  the  operators  alone.  The  principal  suf- 
ferers are  the  public.  In  Arkansas  there  are  frequent  partings  of 
dirt  or  slate  in  the  coal  that  under  proper  methods  would  be  largely 
or  wholly  mined  out.  These  are  shot  down  with  the  coal,  the  dirt 
becoming  hopelessly  mixed  with  the  slack,  and  the  slate  largely  so. 
This  of  course  means  a  loss  to  the  consumer  in  the  freight  paid 
on  worthless  material,  to  say  nothing  of  the  loss  in  heating  value. 
While  the  per  cent  .of  slate  thus  introduced  in  lump  coal  has  not 
been  ascertained,  it  is  known  to  be  great,  regardless  of  the  fact  that 
the  larger  miners  each  employ  extra  slate  pickers  in  their  efforts 
to  put  good  coal  on  the  market.  An  idea  of  the  per  cent  of  increase 
of  fine  slate  in  slack  may  be  obtained  from  a  single  slack  washer, 
in  which  it  was  found  that  the  per  cent  of  slate  in  the  slack  in- 
creased from  ii  in  1907  to  23  in  1910.  By  comparison  with  the 
price  of  other  coals  and  figured  on  the  basis  of  the  Government 
contracts,  the  loss  in  the  quantity  of  the  Arkansas  coal  due  to  the 
excess  of  slate  is  $  .35  a  ton.  As  the  normal  annual  output  of 
Arkansas  coal  is  two  and  a  half  million  tons,  this  means  that  there 
is  an  annual  loss  to  the  consumers  of  $875,000  net.  A  conservative 
estimate  shows  that  the  -excess  of  slate  in  the  coal  used  by  the  state 
institutions  of  Arkansas  costs  the  state  about  $4,500  a  year.  This 
comes  in  loss  of  fuel  value  and  the  freight  and  drayage  on  the 
excess  slate. 


230         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

Not  only  is  the  quantity  of  Arkansas  coal  reduced  by  the  ex- 
cess of  slate  in  both  lump  and  slack,  but  the  quality  of  the  lump  is 
materially  reduced.  The  heavy  charges  used  in  shooting  down  the 
coal  greatly  reduce  the  amount  of  lump  that  goes  over  the  screen, 
and  also  so  shatters  this  that  in  the  jarring  and  handling  incident 
to  its  transportation  from  the  mine  to  the  consumer,  no  small  per 
cent  is  broken  down  into  slack.  I  think  it  is  safe  to  say  that  of  the 
so-called  lump  coal  produced  by  our  mines,  at  least  30  per  cent  is 
slack  before  it  reaches  the  cellar  of  the  consumer.  In  common  par- 
lance, the  consumer  "has  the  bag  to  hold." 

As  the  operators  sell  coal  at  close  profits,  the  balance  of  trade 
between  competing  districts  is  very  sensitive  and  quickly  responds 
to  an  increased  cost  of  mining  or  a  decreased  quantity  from  any 
district.  This  is  exemplified  in  eastern  Arkansas,  where  Arkansas 
coal  and  Illinois  coal  come  into  competition.  In  1904,  it  was  shown 
by  Government  experts  that  Arkansas  coal  had  at  that  time  about 
20  per  cent  more  heating  value,  and  less  ash  and  sulphur  than 
Illinois  coal.  It  was,  therefore,  then  possible  to  sell  Arkansas  coal 
at  competitive  points  for  a  higher  price  than  was  paid  for  Illinois 
coal ;  but  at  present,  the  quality  of  Arkansas  coal  is  so  reduced 
that  the  market  of  the  eastern  part  of  the  state  is  supplied  largely 
by  the  Illinois  mines  at  prices  ranging  from  35  cents  to  50  cents  a 
ton  higher  than  that  of  Arkansas  coal. 

The  excess  of  dirt  and  slate  in  coal  not  only  results  in  loss  of 
market,  but  entails  much  extra  cost  in  mining.  During  the  year 
1909  one  company  in  Arkansas  washed  28,800  tons  of  dirt  from  its 
slack.  It  is  estimated  that  at  least  half  of  this  could  haVe  been 
left  out  by  proper  mining.  That  is,  the  company  paid  62  cents  a 
ton  or  $8928  for  dirt  that  in  all  fairness  should  have  been  left  in  the 
mine.  Probably  a  better  idea  of  the  increased  cost  of  mining  could 
be  arrived  at  in  another  way.  Since  the  mine-run  law  went  into 
operation  in  our  state,  the  increase  in  the  amount  of  slate  is  con- 
servatively estimated  at  5  per  cent  of  the  weight  of  the  coal.  With 
an  annual  output  of  2,500,000  tons,  this  excess  of  slate  costs  the 
operators  $137,500.  If  this  slate  is  removed  before  the  coal  goes 
on  the  market,  the  operators  suffer.  If  not,  the  consumer  suffers. 

The  cost  of  mining  is  further  increased  by  the  cost  of  ex- 
plosions produced,  by  excessive  use  of  powder,  by  removing  the 
excessive  amount  of  draw  slate,  and  by  an  increase  in  the  general 
operating  expenses. 

P>ut  the  effect  of  the  mine-run  law  in  Arkansas  extends  not 
only  to  the  operator  and  consumer,  but  in  many  ways  reacts  upon 


THE  M1XE-RUN  LAW  IN  ARKANSAS.  231 

the  miner  himself.  Not  the  least  of  these  is  an  increase  in  mine 
accidents.  In  1905,  there  were  21.2  accidents  to  the  1,000,000  tons 
of  coal  mined,  and  1909,  31.1  accidents — an  increase  of  9.9.  The 
increase  is  caused  from  an  excessive  use  of  powder,  which  loosens 
or  blows  out  the  props,  shatters  the  roof  so  as  to  increase  the 
falls  of  rock,  and  makes  the  shot-firer  s  task  a  hazardous  one. 

The  daily  earnings  of  many  miners  are  less  than  formerly,  the 
decrease  ranging  from  25  cents  to  $1.00.  The  reduced  earnings  of 
our  miners  through  loss  of  market  and  the  general  depression  of 
the  industry  in  the  state  doubtless  is  far  greater  than  they  realize. 
If  the  Arkansas  operators  could  control  the  market  in  the  eastern 
part  of  the  state  that  legitimately  belongs  to  them,  but  which  is 
now  supplied  by  Illinois  and  Alabama,  with  the  present  miners  and 
present  crew  they  could  run  a  possible  20  days  per  month  instead  of 
17  days.  The  average  earnings  of  the  miners  would  thereby  be 
increased  $7  per  month,  which  with  4000  miners  in  the  state  would 
be  a  total  monthly  increase  of  $28,000. 

A  very  serious  effect  upon  the  miner  and  one  that  is  growing 
is  the  loss  of  skill.  It  takes  a  miner  to  mine  coal,  but  any  able  bodied 
man  can  shoot  it.  The  latter  shoots  the  coal  down  as  slack  and  as 
the  former  must  come  in  competition  with  him,  the  inevitable  result 
is  to  lower  the  work  of  the  craft  to  that  of  the  common  laborer. 

The  foregoing  remarks  relate  to  conservation  in  the  coal 
industry  chiefly  in  the  broad  application  of  the  term.  Let  us  now 
take  up  briefly  the  effects  of  the  mine-run  law  in  the  more  re- 
stricted sense  of  relating  to  the  permanent  waste  of  coal.  The 
heavy  shooting  causes  an  unknown  but  large  per  cent  of  the  coal 
to  fly  to  all  parts  of  the  room.  Much  of  this  falls  in  places  that  are 
not  conveniently  accessible,  and  much  of  it  on  the  piles  of  draw 
slate.  The  miner  cannot  afford  to  spend  his  time  to  pick  up  this 
coal,  so  it  remains  in  the  mine  as  a  permanent  loss. 

There  is  another  permanent  loss  of  coal  in  unmined  patches 
that  cannot  be  worked  with  profit  under  present  conditions  for 
which  the  mine-run  law  is  largely,  if  not  wholly  responsible.  Such 
patches  include  those  in  which  there  is  an  unusual  number  of  bands 
of  dirt ;  or  an  unusual  amount  of  bone  or  sulphur ;  or  where  the  coal 
is  seamy  or  otherwise  faulty;  or  where  the  roof  will  not  stand  the 
heavy  shooting;  or  those  parts  that  are  too  thin  to  mine  under 
present  conditions.  After  these  patches  are  left  and  the  mine  fills 
with  water,  it  probably  never  will  be  practicable  to  mine  them  out. 

All  this  is  attributable  to  the  reduced  profits  brought  about  by 
mine-run  conditions.  A  careful  study  of  mining  costs  shows  that, 


232         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

at  an  additional  expense  of  10  cents  a  ton,  enough  coal  can  be 
mined  from  the  patches  that  are  now  left  in  the  ground,  to  increase, 
by  15  per  cent,  the  proportion  of  coal  recovered  from  the  areas 
which  are  now  mined.  It  is  estimated  that  the  total  underground 
waste  in  Arkansas, -under  present  conditions,  is  20  per  cent  of  the 
output.  As  the  normal  output  is  about  2,500,000  tons,  the  loss  to 
the  state  is  about  500,000  tons  annually,  worth  $840,000.  This  may 
be  considered  an  absolute  waste  of  our  resources. 

A  summary  of  the  annual  cost  to  the  state  of  Arkansas  which 
we  think  is  fairly  attributed  to  the  mine-run  law,  is  as  follows : 
Loss  to  present  producers  and  consumers.  .$1,670,000 
Net  loss  to  mine  workers  now  in  the  state.  .       100,000 

Loss  due  to  the  loss  of  market 1,600,000 

Loss   from  unmined  patches 840,000 


Total $4,210,000 

In  a  state  which  is  relatively  a  very  small  producer  of  coal,  this 
is  appalling.  It  is  the  result  of  a  law  that  was  enacted  with  the  best 
of  intentions.  On  its  face  it  appears  to  give  the  miners  what  they 
justly  deserve;  but  in  its  operation  it  reaches  out  in  many  directions 
with  disastrous  results  that  not  even  the  most  thoughtful  operators 
foresaw.  It  works  a  great  injury  to  the  consumer,  the  operator, 
and  even  to  the  miner  himself.  Many,  it  is  believed  a  majority,  of 
the  miners  in  our  state  recognize  the  evils  of  the  la^w,  and  would 
hail  its  repeal  with  delight. 


The  "Mine  Run  System"  of  Mining  Coal.* 

BY  J.   E.   FINNEY, 

I  I  I'. \TINGDON,    ARKANSAS, 
Representing  the  Southwestern  Interstate  Coal  Operators'  Association. 


This  great  commercial  era  is  popularly  regarded  as  a  day  of 
"greed  and  graft,"  a  "survival  of  the  fittest,"  in  the  industrial 
world.  This  is  a  mistaken  idea,  and  not  in  accord  with  the  conduct 
of  modern  well-regulated  business  enterprises.  Society  in  general, 
and  the  rising  generation  in  particular,  appeal  for  protection  against 
any  system  of  business  or  law  of  commerce  that  encourages  dis- 
honesty or  permits  fraud.  It  is  true  that  there  are  some  men  in  all 
the  ordinary  branches  of  business  that  consider  it  a  mark  of  suc- 
cess to  be  well  versed  in  the  art  of  scheming  and  defrauding  their 
fellowmen,  but  such  men  and  methods  should  not  be  protected  by 
the  strong  arm  of  the  law. 

Recent  legislatures  in  some  of  our  coal  producing  states  have 
been  led  to  believe  that  a  great  fraud  was  being  practiced  upon  the 
coal  miners  by  paying  them  for  the  coal  they  produced  on  a 
"Screened  Lump"  basis,  whereby  they  were  paid  a  certain  price  per 
ton  for  lump  coal  and,  apparently,  nothing  for  the  slack  which 
necessarily  accumulated  in  the  process  of  mining  and  loading  this 
lump  coal.  These  legislatures  sought  to  remedy  this  so-called  evil 
by  enacting  laws  that  would  prevent  the  coal  being  passed  over  a 
screen  before  it  was  weighed  and  paid  for,  and  as  a  result  we  have 
the  "Mine  Run"  basis  for  mining  and  paying  for  coal  in  these 
states.  After  a  few  years  of  actual  experience,  it  is  now  evident 
that  the  operation  of  these  laws,  by  a  natural  process,  and  without 
criminal  intent  on  the  part  of  those  implicated,  has  developed  the 
greatest  system  of  fraud  ever  known  to  the  mining  business.  It 
is  admitted  that  some  unscrupulous  operators  had  allowed  the 
screens  to  spread,  thereby  deducting  unfair  quantities  of  slack  from 
the  lumps,  but  this  was  confined  to  the  careless  or  unscrupulous 
operators  who  were  a  discredit  to  the  mining  industry  and  whose 
acts  were  deplored  by  their  fellow  operators  as  well  as  the  miners. 
Either  of  the  above  methods  of  operation  are  inclined  to  debauch 


*The  discussion  of  this  subject  is  especially  applicable  to  the  south- 
western coal  fields,  and  particularly  to  the  prevailing  conditions  in  Ar- 
kansas and  Oklahoma. 


234         PROCEEDINGS..  AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

the  morality  of  the  men  engaged  in  this  great  industry,  and  to  cor- 
rect this  unnecessary  evil  it  would  seem  that  the  logical  conclusion 
would  be  to  repeal  this  mine  run  legislation,  to  prevent  fraud 
on  the  part  of  the  miners ;  and  enact  legislation  providing  for  a 
standard,  uniform  screen,  with  severe  penalties  for  fraud  in  con- 
struction and  maintenance,  to  prevent  fraud  on  the  part  of  the 
operators.  This  would,  in  our  judgment,  insure  equitable  pay- 
ment for  the  labor  of  mining  the  coal,  and  fair  methods  of  pro- 
ducing coal  that  is  paid  for  with  the  understanding  that  it  shall 
be  "good,  marketable  coal."  This  would  insure  fair  dealings  on 
the  part  of  both  employer  and  employe  and  prevent  the  destruction 
of  vast  quantities  of  coal  by  overshooting  it  into  a  mixture  of  slate 
and  slack  that  cannot  be  separated;  thus  conserving  this  great  waste 
of  our  most  valuable  natural  resource,  and  at  the  same  time,  re- 
move an  incentive  to  fraud  that  benefits  nobody  but  is  an  expense 
to  every  consumer  of  coal,  and  is  corrupting  the  morals  of  hun- 
dreds of  otherwise  upright  young  men. 

Aside  from  the  claim  that  the  screen  deducts  unfair  quantities 
of  coal,  the  prime  reason  urged  for  the  enactment  of  this  legisla- 
tion was  said  to  be  an  effort  to  make  the  operator  pay  for  the  slack 
at  the  same  rate  that  he  paid  for  the  lumps ;  and,  it  has  been  stated 
by  the  miners'  legislative  agents  that  the  inexperienced  should 
receive  the  same  wage  as  the  skilled  miner,  which  is  evidently  an 
effort  to  secure  recognition  of  equality  among  all  miners  regardless 
of  their  ability  or  experience.  It  is  an  undisputed  fact  that  the  old- 
time  miner,  trained  to  use  picks  instead  of  powder,  can  earn  better 
wages  under  the  screen  coal  basis ;  while  under  the  mine  run  sys- 
tem the  man  with  the  longest  auger  is  the  best  "coal-digger" — all 
classes  of  miners  being  equal  as  long  as  they  are  supplied  with 
plenty  of  powder.  This  theory  of  "all  men  being  equal"  seems  to 
have  entered  into  the  question  of  mining  coal.  It  has  been  proven 
by  history  as  well  as  our  own  experience  that  equality  cannot  exist 
among  all  men,  but  only  among  individuals  who  stand  upon  a  com- 
mon level  physically,  intellectually  and  morally.  Nature  herself 
proves  that  there  is  no  standard  in  any  form  of  life.  The  corn- 
stalk grows  one  ear  more  perfect  than  all  the  rest.  The  natural 
process  of  life  and  living  separate  the  fit  from  the  unfit.  To  urge 
the  fitness  of  a  blind  artist  in  a  contest  with  one  who  sees  is  just 
as  logical  as  to  claim  the  right  of  inefficiency  to  share  equally  with 
industrious  capability.  The  best  man  wins,  not  by  following  others, 
but  by  virtue  of  his  place  to  the  fore.  The  door  of  opportunity  opens 


THE  "MINE-RUN  SYSTEM."  235 

wide  to  the  man  who  has  the  strength,  courage  and  tenacity  to  em- 
brace it.  A  system  that  would  reward  equally  the  indolent  with 
the  energetic ;  the  coward  with  the  courageous,  and  the  skilled  with 
the  unskilled  would  soon  reduce  society  to  an  unaccomplishing  in- 
feriority by  removing  the  impetus  which  urges  progress  along  all 
the  lines  of  human  advancement. 

There  is  no  doubt  but  that  the  legislatures  referred  to  enacted 
the  mine  run  system  into  law  in  an  effort  to  correct  what  they 
considered  to  be  a  great  injustice  to  thousands  of  coal  miners  which 
they  represent.  Notwithstanding,  we  now  discover  that  this  mine 
run  "system  is  a  most  serious  detriment  to  millions  of  consumers 
and  of  no  benefit  to  the  miners  themselves.  In  fact,  it  is  a  detri- 
ment to  the  miners  because  it  places  a  premium  on  unskilled,  reck- 
less and  vicious  shooting  of  coal  with  excessive  quantities  of  powder 
to  the  detriment  of  the  skilled,  careful  and  conscientious  miner  who 
gets  no  more  for  the  product  of  his  painstaking  labor  than  the  un- 
skilled man  does  for  shooting  his  coal  out  with  no  skill  and  very 
little  labor.  Under  the  screen  coal  system  the  average  miner  re- 
ceived the  same  wage  for  one  ton  of  coal  as  it  comes  from  the 
mine  as  he  now  gets,  while  the  more  skilled  miner  received  more 
per  ton  by  reason  of  the  fact  that  he  had  above  the  average  per- 
centage of  lumps  and  was  paid  according  to  the  lumps  produced  by 
him.  For  example:  In  Arkansas,  before  the  enactment  of  the 
mine  run  law,  the  miner  received  62  cents  per  ton  for  mine  run 
coal  and  90  cents  per  ton  for  screened  lump  coal.  At  that  time  the 
average  miner  produced  69%  lumps  and  31%  slack.  On  a  mine 
run  basis,  at  62  cents  per  ton,  he  would  receive  $62  for  100  tons  of 
mine  run  coal.  On  a  screened  lump  coal  basis,  at  90  cents  per  ton, 
he  would  receive  $62.10  for  100  tons  of  mine  run.  By  the  exercise 
of  care  and  skill  in  producing  the  coal,  better  miners  would  get  75% 
to  80%  lumps,  which  would  net  them  (8ox9oc)  $72  for  100  tons 
mine  run,  or,  72  cents  per  ton  for  the  mine  run  when  paid  on  the 
screened  lump  basis.  Thus  it  is  proven  that  it  is  possible  for  the 
experienced  miner  to  earn  IDC  per  ton  more  for  good  honest  work 
on  the  screened  lump  basis  than  he  can  get  under  the  mine  run 
system. 

So  much  data  has  been  gathered  on  this  subject  that  we  refrain 
from  introducing  additional  facts  as  we  believe  the  following  state- 
ments, from  such  well-known  and  authoritative  sources,  are  more 
convincing  than  anything  we  could  suggest : 


236        PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

Edward  W.  Parker,  U.  S.  Geological  Survey  Bulletin,  Jan.  3, 
1911,  timely  observes  on 

Over-Shooting  Coal: 

"Arkansas  and  Oklahoma  have  suffered  from  other  troubles 
than  the  strike.  There  has  been  strong  tendency  on  the  part  of  the 
miners  to  use  increased  quantities  of  poivder,  and  it  is  also  stated 
that  dynamite  is  frequently  used,  a  practice  which  is  not  only  dan- 
gerous to  life  and  property,  but  results  in  a  largely  increased  per- 
centage of  slack.  Moreover,  it  is  the  practice  in  nearly  all  the 
mines  to  shoot  off  the  solid.  This  also  is  extra  hazardous  and  has 
increased  "the  quantity  of  slack  so  that  it  is  now  double  what  it  was 
fifteen  years  ago.  This  results  in  complaints  by  the  purchasers  that 
coal  which  appears  to  be  lump  coal  on  arrival  easily  disintegrates  as 
a  result  of  the  crushing  strain  to  which  it  has  been  subjected  by  the 
mining  methods  employed." 

The  General  Assembly  of  Arkansas,  in  1909,  created  a 
commission  consisting  of  the  Governor,  Commissioner  of 
Mines,  and  the  President  of  the  University  of  Arkansas,  and 
authorized  them  to  appoint  Prof.  A.  H.  Purdue,  State  Geol- 
ogist, and  instruct  him  to  investigate  or  have  investigated 
the  conditions  relating  to  the  safety  of  miners  and  mine  oper- 
ations. These  investigations  were  conducted  by  Prof.  A.  A. 
Steel,  Professor  of  Mining,  University  of  Arkansas,  and  the 
reports  of  his  investigations  are  of  vital  interest  to  all  oper- 
ators and  miners  affected  by  the  "Mine  Run  System,"  as 
provided  for  in  the  statutes  of  Arkansas. 

(Practically  the  same  law  is  in  effect  in  Oklahoma,  Kansas  and 
Missouri,  and  in  a  modified  form  in  several  other  states.) 

We  can  offer  no  better  argument  against  the  operation 
of  the  mine  run  law  than  to  quote  some  of  the  important 
findings  of  the  above  Commission,  composed  of  such  notable 
and  worthy  men,  and  personally  certified  to  by  Prof.  A.  A. 
Steel,  who  went  into  the  mines  and  gathered  information 
from  the  rank  and  file  of  the  miners,  as  well  as  operators 
and  consumers. 

We  refer  you  to  the  report  of  the  Arkansas  Geological  Survey, 
as  follows : 

Screens  Do  Not  Reduce  Wages. 

That  ,the  screened-coal  basis  of  payment  recompensed  the  miner 
in  full,  is  shown  by  the  results  at  Mine  No.  2,  Denning.  Here  the  coal 
is  of  such  unusually  high  quality  that  it  can  be  shot  from  the  solid  with 


THE  "MINE-RUN  SYSTEM."  237 

.  a  less  proportion  of  slack  than  in  most  mines;  but  in  order  to  encourage 
the  miner  to  use  care  in  placing  his  'shots,  the  company  has  gone  to  the 
expense  of  first  weighing  the  coal  as  required  by  the  mine-run  law  and 
crediting  the  miner  with  it.  The  coal  is  then  screened  and  the  lump 
coal  reweighed  and  credited  to  the  miner  at  the  old  price  of  90c  per  ton. 
If  at  the  end  of  two  weeks  the  price  of  this  lump  coal  at  90c  per  ton 
is  greater  than  that  of  the  mine-run  coal  at  62c  per  ton,  the  miner  is  paid 
the  difference  as  a  premium.  Otherwise,  he  gets  the  full  mine-run  price. 
Under  this  arrangement,  however,  the  men  have  much  less  incentive  to 
do  good  work  than  if  they  did  not  have  the  mine-run  basis  of  payment  to 
fall  back  upon.  The  result  is  that,  the  lazy  men  shoot  the  coal  to  bits 
and  the  incompetent  ones  make  no  effort  to  improve  so  as  properly  to 
mine  the  coal.  Still,  out  of  203  diggers  on  the  pay-roll  for  January,  1910, 
134  or  66  per  cent,  earned  the  premium;  that  is,  they  received  more  than 
62c  a  ton  for  all  the  coal  including  the  slack  in  it. 

Maintenance  of  Screens. 

The  second  argument  in  favor  of  the  passage  of  the  law  was,  "The 
screen  is  a  robber."  By  this  is  meant  that  the  bars  of  the  screen  would 
become  bent  and  permit  large  slabs  of  coal  to  pass  through.  It  is  re- 
gretted that  one  or  two  of  the  companies  were  very  careless  about  the 
condition  of  their  screens  many  years  ago,  but  this  injustice  was  very 
promptly  corrected  by  the  Miners'  Union  upon  its  organization  in  1903. 
For  years  the  screens  have  never  been  seriously  defective  and  when 
slightly  out  of  order  they  have  been  promptly  repaired.  In  fact  the  min- 
ers' committee  inspected  the  screens  each  time  the  scales  were  tested, 
and  whenever  any  bar  became  bent  the  committee  required  that  it  be 
straightened  before  any  more  coal  was  weighed.  The  operators  now 
generally  realize  that  it  is  actually  to  their  own  interest  to  maintain  the 
screen  in  good  condition  since  screened  coal  for  domestic  use  has  always 
been  worth  more  than  90c  a  ton  above  the  price  of  slack  coal. 

Reduction  of  Wages. 

The  mine  run  law  requires  that  the  miner  be  paid  for  his  coal  re- 
gardless of  its  quality.  It  takes  less  labor  and  less  skill  to  shoot  the 
coal  out  carelessly  than  to  mine  it  in  such  a  way  as  to  get  a  large  pro- 
portion of  good  lump.  The  mine  run  law  therefore  gives  the  miner  the 
same  pay  for  less  work  and  this  is  the  real  reason  why  some  miners  favor 
it.  If  it  is  claimed  that  the  production  of  good  coal  requires  too  much 
work,  why  not  for  the  same  reason  prohibit  the  contracting  masons  from 
allowing  those  of  their  men  that  are  paid  by  the  thousand  brick  laid,  to 
point  or  otherwise  finish  the  joints?  Or,  why  not  prohibit  the  plasterers 
from  troweling  their  work  smooth,  or  compel  the  cabinet  maker  to  leave 
his  furniture  unplaned?  In  each  case,  labor  would  be  saved  and  people 
could  get  along.  Such  examples  show  the  folly  of  attempting  to  change 
methods  of  work  by  law.  Besides  determining  the  manner  of  weighing 
the  coal,  the  mine  run  law  has  changed  the  method  of  mining  it.  This 
change  has  caused  the  injury  to  the  quality  of  the  coal,  which  in  turn 
causes  a  hardship  to  the  public. 

Fifty  Per  Cent  Increase  of  Slack. 

The  law  has  made  the  companies  powerless  to  regulate  the  amount 
of  their  coal  which  is  shot  into  slack,  with  the  result  that  the  proportion 
of  slack  is  constantly  increasing.  Affidavits  of  the  companies,  an  exam- 
ination of  their  shipping  books,  and  the  results  of  test  runs  made  by  the 
superintendents,  show  that  those  few  mines  which  made  as  little  as  21 
per  cent  of  slack  on  the  old  screened  coal  basis  now  make  31  per  cent; 
those  which  then  made  about  25  per  cent  now  make  from  35  to  40  per 
cent;  those  which  then  made  about  30  per  cent  now  make  over  40  per 
cent;  and  those  that  made  about  34  per  cent  in  the  old  days  now  make 
50  per  cent.  This  shows  an  increase  in  the  proportion  of  slack  of  about 


238         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

50  per  cent  of  its  original  amount.  It  will  be  shown  later  that  this 
excessive  production  of  slack  causes  a  waste  of  one  of  our  natural 
resources. 

Table  of  Increase  in  Kansas  in  Ten  Years*. 

Year.  Per  cent  Lump  Per  cent  Slack 

Coal.  Coal. 

1894 59.21  25.96 

1895 57.79  27.60 

1896 57.65  26.54 

1897 55.43  27.96 

1898 56.04  29.92 

1899 57.20       .  27.91 

1900 56.12  28.37 

1901  53.37  32.10 

1902 51.73  34.32 

1903 50.38  35.67 

1904 45.91  38.15 

Increase  of  Slack  in  Arkansas. 

For  year  ending  April  1 1906      1907      1909      1910 

Average  of  per  cent  of  slack  at  three  mines..  28.10  28.00  36.04  42.32 
Per  cent  slack  produced  at  one  of  these  mines  26.42  26.10  39.32  41.87 

Powder  vs.  Skill. 

Many  of  the  miners  are  fine  men  and  do  not  wish  to  be  known  as 
"slack  makers,"  but  they  find  it  hard  to  withstand  the  gibes  of  their  fel- 
lows and  are  therefore  becoming  more  and  more  careless.  From  year  to 
year  the  common  length  of  the  augers  sold  to  the  miners  is  increasing. 
This  shows  the  tendency  to  put  in  fewer  and  heavier  shots  than  for- 
merly. It  means  heavier  blasting  and  more  slack  each  year.  As  the 
younger  men  who  are  now  entering  the  trade  do  not  understand  the  old 
careful  way  of  mining,  the  proportion  of  miners  skilled  in  the  best  meth- 
ods is  bound  to  decrease;  and  the  proportion  of  slack  produced  in  mining 
the  coal  will  correspondingly  increase,  unless  the  men  have  some  in- 
centive to  do  better  work. 

Desperate  Efforts  to  Get  Lumps. 

At  present  some  of  the  superintendents  are  arranging  to  get  lower 
sideboards  upon  what  new  cars  they  need,  .and  to  give  the  miner  fewer 
cars  per  day.  Then  in  order  that  the  miner  may  make  good  wages,  he 
must  mine  up  enough  lumps  to  chunk  up  his  car  so  as  to  increase  its 
capacity.  Some  superintendents  are  even  thinking  of  removing  the  doors 
from  the  cars  so  that  the  miners  will  have  to  mine  lumps  to  hold  the 
coal  in  the  car.  Both  of  these  .plans  will  work  a  hardship  upon  the  good 
miners  as  well  as  upon  the  careless  ones,  and  the  second  one  is  only  a 
desperate  last  resort,  for  it  may  increase  the  accidents  upon  slopes. 

Unnecessary  Waste  Which  Benefits  Nobody. 

Since  we  have  sufficiently  shown  that  a  constantly  increasing  pro- 
portion of  good  lump  coal  is  shot  into  slack  as  a  result  of  the  passage  of 
the  mine  run  law  in  1905,  it  may  be  interesting  to  see  how  this  affects  the 
operators. 

Since  slack  coal  is  worth  so  much  less  than  lump  coal,  the  natural 
result  of  an  increase  in  its  proportion  is  to  decrease  the  average  value  of 
the  coal.  The  average  prices  of  the  different  sizes  of  coal  have  not  been 
published,  but  from  information  given  by  companies,  wholesale  dealers, 
and  others,  it  is  known  that  the  price  of  the  slack  coal  is  from  95c  to  $1.50 
per  ton  less  than  that  of  the  lump  coal  from  which  the  full  amount  of 
fine  coal  has  been  removed.  The  average  difference  is  at  least  $1.15  a 
ton.  Now  the  mine  run  law  has  increased  the  slack  on  an  average  from 
the  normal  30  per  cent  to  at  least  45  per  cent.  It  has  therefore  reduced 
the  value  of  15  per  cent  of  the  output  of  the  state  by  $1.15  a  ton. 


T1LK  "M  INK-RUN  SYSTEM."  239 

Some  Results  of  Over-Shooting. 

"Shattering  the  Lump  Coal."  The  mine  run  law  injures  the  com- 
panies by  also  reducing  the  quality  of  the  output  and  hence  its  cash 
value.  The  heavy  careless  shooting  not  only  reduces  the  proportion  of 
lump  coal  but  also  greatly  weakens  those  lumps  which  are  not  entirely 
broken  up.  As  a  result,  they  readily  slack  off  on  standing  and  are  easily 
broken  by  handling.  It  will  therefore  not  endure  railroad  shipment  as 
well  as  it  should.  When  domestic  lump  coal  is  loaded  out  by  a  careful 
retail  dealer,  the  lumps  are  forked  out  and  the  coal  remaining  is  sold  at 
slack  prices.  In  this  way,  it  is  possible  to  tell  accurately  how  much  slack 
is  found  in  the  coal.  An  affidavit  of  Mr.  Geo.  McLean  of  the  Merchants' 
Transfer  Company  of  Little  Rock,  states  that  several  years  ago,  the 
Arkansas  coal  which  he  sold  left  from  3  to  5  per  cent  of  slack,  whereas, 
in  1908,  it  left  from  10  to  16,  generally  about  15  per  cent.  This  is  coal 
which  left  the  mines  as  clean,  fancy  lump  and  was  screened  in  the  same 
way  as  before  the  mine  law  went  into  effect.  The  experience  of  Mr. 
McLean  is  that  of  all  dealers  and  consumers,  and  shows  how  much  the 
coal  is  shattered  by  the  excessive  shooting. 

"Increase  of  Slate  in  the  Coal."  There  is  a  further  injury  to  the 
operators,  because  the  mine  run  law  compels  the  companies  to  pay  th£ 
miners  as  much  for  slate  as  for  coal.  Some  little  protection  is  afforded 
by  the  agreement  with  the  Union  which  allows  a  few  of  the  worst 
offenders  to  be  laid  off  for  from  one  to  three  days,  but  they  can  only  be 
penalized  for  loading  out  slate  that  is-  in  large  enough  pieces  to  be 
picked  out  by  hand  from  the  lump  coal.  The  companies  are  not  allowed 
to  put  another  man  in  the  place  made  vacant,  so  the  laying  off  of  the 
men  is  an  expense  to  the  company  because  it  reduces  the  output  of  the 
mine.  Since  it  is  generally  impracticable  to  inspect  the  slack  coal  for 
slate,  the  miner  gets  a  premium  for  shooting  all  of  the  dirt  band  and  • 
slate  into  small  pieces  and  of  course  the  coal  goes  also.  Nevertheless, 
much  slate  in  large  sizes  gets  into  the  lump  coal,  although  the  com- 
panies have  from  two  to  six  extra  pickers  at  each  large  mine  in  their 
efforts  to  produce  salable  coal.- 

"Cost  of  Explosions."  A  further  slight  increase  in  the  cost  is  due  to 
the  increasing  frequency  of  destructive  "windy  shots,"  or  dust  explosions, 
resulting  from  the  excessive  use  of  powder.  Doors  and  stopings  blown 
down  by  them  must  be  replaced,  and  the  cost  of  a  single  general  ex- 
plosion is  often  great.  At  many  mines,  it  is  already  necessary  to  pay  the 
shot  firers  extra  on  account  of  the  extra  risk  they  run. 

"Effects  of  Heavy  Blasting."  A  little  reflection  will  show  how  much 
more  a  heavy  wide  shot  will  affect  the  roof,  than  the  same  -amount  of 
powder  in  two  light  shots.  At  present  many  of  the  miners  put  in  only 
about  half  as  many  shots  as  formerly,  to  get  out  the  same  amount  of 
coal.  All  of  them  are  using  fewer  shots.  This  change  in  the  blasting 
does  not  show  in  the  figures  for  the  consumption  of  powder,  and  it  is 
safe  to  say  that  at  present  the  blasting  of  the  coal  is  at  least  three  times 
as  severe  as  it  was  in  1905. 

The  heavy  shooting  also  sends  the  coal  flying  against  the  props. 
At  a  mine  at  Spadra,  the  writer  saw  some  large  pieces  of  coal  which 
had  been  thrown  by  the  blast  of  the  afternoon  before  a  distance  of  40  feet. 
They  had  knocked  out  the  props  so  as  to  leave  an  open  lane  down  one 
side  of  the  room.  Besides  knocking  out  props,  such  shooting  cracks  or 
otherwise  weakens  some  of  them  in  a  way  which  the  miner  does  not 
notice  until  the  roof  falls.  The  worst  trouble  is  the  increasing  tendency 
of  the  miner  to  set  his  props  as  far  from  the  face  as  possible,  so  as  to 
save  the  labor  of  replacing  them.  He  therefore  works  in  an  unprotected 
space.  This  wide  space  also  gives  the  roof  a  chance  to  loosen  and  get 
drummy,  which  throws  an  added  strain  upon  the  places  where  the  tough 
slabs  have  been  weakened  by  the  direct  blows  of  the  powder. 

The  hea.vy  and  wide  shots  now  used  are  dangerous  to  the  shotfirers, 
and  many  miners  have  begun  to  ignore  all  ordinary  precautions  for  safety 
in  blasting.  At  a  mine  near  Hartford,  the  writer  saw  a  large  mass  of  • 


240         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

coal  which  had  been  shot  out  of  its  position,  but  was  still  tightly 
wedged  between  the  roof  and  a  roll  in  the  floor.  The  miner  was  very 
frank  and  when  asked  how  he  would  go  about  picking  this  coal  down,  he 
laughingly  set  his  auger  in  position  for  drilling  a  splitting  shot  through 
the  center  of  this  chunk  of  coal  and  said,  "With  two  feet  of  powder." 
Then  he  added,  "I  always  find  an  auger  when  I  start  to  look  for  a  pick." 

"Accidents."  So  far  as  they  are  available,  the  records  of  the  acci- 
dents in  the  Arkansas  mines  show  the  increases  in  the  number  due  to 
falls  of  roof  and  the  firing  of  shots,  which  might  be  expected  from  the 
increased  severity  of  the  blasting. 

Imperfect  as  these  figures  are,  they  well  illustrate  the  effect  of  the 
mine  run  law.  The  heavy  shooting  following  the  passage  of  the  law 
has  progressively  increased  the  amount  of  rock  falling  in  the  rooms  to 
triple  that  of  1905;  this  is  shown  in  the  table  on  p.  267.  It  is  therefore 
directly  responsible  for  at  least  half  the  deaths  due  to  this  cause  in 
1908.  All  the  fatal  accidents  due  to  firing  shots  in  1907  and  1908  and 
probably  at  least  half  of  those  in  1906,  happened  to  regular  shotfirers. 
Nearly  all  of  these  deaths  are  due  to  the  heavy  and  careless  loading  of 
the  shots  encouraged  by  the  mine  run  law  and  at  least  four  of  the  seven 
may  be  charged  against  it. 

Loss  of  Skill 

The  miners  are  further 'injured  by  the  mine  run  law  because  under 
its  operation  they  are  losing  their  old-time  skill,  which  will  make  it  im- 
possible for  them  to  get  employment  in  fields  where  it  is  necessary  to 
do  pick  work.  This  lowering  of  the  standard  of  skill  also  throws  the 
occupation  open  to  any  man  with  a  strong  body.  As  soon,  therefore,  as 
the  artificial  conditions  due  to  the  Union,  break  down,  the  wages  of  the 
coal  miners  can  not  be  maintained  as  much  above  the  pay  of  common 
laborers  as  at  present.  The  bringing  in  of  such  a  lot  of  inferior  work- 
men is  sure  also  to  be  the  end  of  the  Union,  since  unskilled  labor  has 
never  been  successfully  held  in  line  during  a  long  strike. 

There  is  now  no  incentive  for  the  new  men  to  learn  how  properly 
to  shoot  the  coal  and  as  a  result  the  mine  run  law  means  stagnation  in 
the  progress  of  our  miners  toward  increased  efficiency. 

Loss*  to  Arkansas  as  a  Result  of  the  Mine  Run  Legislation. 

In  conclusion,  we  repeat  the  list  of  direct  money  losses  caused  to 
the  state  each  year  by  this  absurd  law. 

The  loss  to  the  present  producers  and  consumers  of  coal $1,670,000 

The  net  loss  to  the  mine  workers  now  in  the  state 100,000 

Additional  loss  to  the  coal  industry  alone  due  to  loss  of  market.  1,600,000 
Absolute  waste  of  our  resources 850,000 


Total    $4,220,000 

The  astounding  sum  of  money  includes  no  duplication  and  does  not 

consider  the  great  loss  to  the  railroads,  merchants,  and  other  interests 

incident  to  the  decline  of  the  coal-mining  industry. 

In  addition  to  the  money  loss,  this  law  already  costs  the  .lives  of 

seven  of  our  miners  every  year,  sacrificed  to  the  greater  ease  of  shooting 

out  the  coal,  instead  of  mining  it. 

This  is  surely  sufficient  to  make  it  clear  that  the  repeal  of  the  law 

prohibiting  the  screening  of  the  miners'  coal  before  weighing  it,  is  the 

most   important   service    to   the    state   that   the   legislature,    now   has   an 

opportunity  to  perform. 


The  Economics  of  the  Coal  Industry. 


BY  CARL   SCHOLZ, 
CHICAGO,  ILLINOIS. 


The  operations  of  the  Rheinisch  Westfalian  Coal  Syndicate 
have  frequently  been  discussed  as  the  most  satisfactory  organiza- 
tion of  its  kind  and  its  methods  have  been  at  least  partially  described 
in  our  trade  publications.  Little,  if  anything,  has  been  said  as  to 
the  causes  which  led  to  the  establishment  of  the  syndicate — even 
less  is  generally  known  of  various  stages  which  were  gone  through 
before  its  present  form  was  adopted.  Because  this  syndicate  has 
been  in  successful  operation  for  eighteen  years,  with  only  minor 
changes  at  the  expiration  of  each  of  the  five  or  ten  year  contract 
periods,  it  is  customary  to  assume  that  German  mines  have  always 
enjoyed  their  present  prosperity.  It  is  a  popular  notion  that  those 
mines  had  no  part  with  struggles  against  adversity  due  to  competi- 
tion. 

On  the  contrary,  the  same  difficulties  which  now  confront  the 
coal  operators  of  the  United  States  were,  in  the  early  stages,  ex- 
perienced by  the  mine  owners  in  the  Westfalian  district.  In  fact, 
during  1870,  a  crisis  was  reached  and  disaster  was  only  averted 
when  the  German-France  war  brought  a. decided  but  very  short- 
lived relief.  The  lesson  to  the  coal  operator  of  the  United  States  is 
that  Germany  has  faced  and  solved  problems  similar  in  character 
and  degree  to  those  with  which  we  are  struggling.  The  question  for 
us  to  answer  is  whether  we  shall  travel  the  same  road,  step  by  step, 
or  shall  profit  by  their  experience  and  adopt  at  once  their  successful 
plan.  The  tonnage  of  the  Westfalian  district  was  2,250,000  in  1850; 
13,000,000  in  1870;  39,000,000  in  1890  and  91,000,000  tons  in  1909. 
These  figures  are  given  to  show  that  the  increase  is  about  on  the 
same  ratio  as  that  of  the  United  States,  although  with  them,  get- 
ting the  coal  is  more  difficult  and  the  cost  of  extraction  is  greater. 
It  is  safe  to  say  that  with  the  same  physical  difficulties  the  oper- 
ators of  the  United  States  would  not  have  been  able  to  keep  up 
the  rate  of  increase  as  was  done  in  Westfalia.  Because  of  the 
many  points  of  similarity,  it  is  interesting  to  follow  their  develop- 
ment from  early  difficulties  to  the  present. 

From  the  earliest  beginning — over  a  hundred  years  ago — the 
Westfalia  mine  owners  recognized  the  advantages  of  co-operation 
for  mutual  protection  and  funds  were  established  to  provide  against 


242         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

losses  of  life  and  damage  to  property  of  the  individual  operators. 
At  that  time,  mine  owners  worked  alongside  the  few  laborers  whom 
they  employed.  As  the  size  of  mines  increased  and  as  conditions 
of  mining  became  more  hazardous,  the  usefulness  of  the  small  or- 
ganization of  operators  was  extended  to  cover  broader  fields.  In- 
cluded in  those  larger  investigations  were :  matters  of  safety ;  econ- 
omies in  production  and  usage  of  coal ;  the  study  of  competitive  coal 
fields ;  the  testing  of  apparatus,  machinery  and  explosives ;  the  map- 
ping and  study  of  geological  conditions  of  the  coal  fields ;  the  edu- 
cation of  mining  officials  to  cope  with  the  new  dangers,  due  to  deep 
shaft  mining,  gases  and  enormous  water  flows ;  the  management  of 
the  -varipus  accident,  pension  and  annuity  funds ;  the  conduct  of 
hospitals  and  convalescent  stations  for  aged  or  injured  employes  and 
their  families;  and,  the  enactment  of  suitable  and  just  legislation. 

This  work  was  costly  but  was  conducted  by  the  owners  through 
various  associations  and  organizations  who  compiled  valuable  data 
which  was  distributed  to  all  interested  parties.  In  all  of  these  mat- 
ters, the  Government  has  more  or  less  a  voice  through  its  repre- 
sentative in  the  mining  bureau,  which  is  a  part  of  the  department 
of  trade  and  industry.  This  department,  incidentally  headed  by 
the  minister,  carefully  considered  every  proposed  action  and  his 
sanction  had  to  be  secured  before  any  plan  could  be  made  effective. 

During  all  this  time  of  co-operative  work,  the  only  matter  left 
for  individual  decision  was  the  sale  of  coal.  By  the  year  1865  very 
fierce  and  destructive  competition  had  developed,  which  led  to 
financial  ruin  of  many  concerns.  Consolidations  were  effected  but 
without  relief.  Efforts  were  made  to  raise  the  income  by  restrict- 
ing the  output  but  this  proved  ineffective.  It  was  difficult  to  obtain 
the  consent  of  a  sufficient  number  of  owners  to  agree  to  any  restric- 
tion concerning  output,  but  it  was  finally  accomplished.  Under  the 
plan  adopted  a  reduction  of  tonnage  to  ten-twelfths  of  the  previous 
year  was  fixed  as  the  safe  maximum  but  a  depression  in  the  iron 
and  steel  industry  reduced  the  estimated  requirements  and,  notwith- 
standing the  many  fines  assessed,  some  producers  exceeded  their 
allotment. 

About  that  time,  coal,  coke  and  briquet  clubs  were  established, 
whose  function  it  was  to  fix  prices  on  the  various  grades  and  sizes 
of  coal,  these  prices  being  regulated  by  the  double  standard  of  the 
intrinsic  values  of  the  coal  and  the  ability  of  the  consumer  to  pay 
the  cost  of  production  was  not,  of  course,  disregarded.  It  should 
be  borne  in  mind  that  steam,  coking,  gas  and  domestic  coal,  in  widely 
ranging  qualities,  were  produced  and  from  this  source  the  complica- 


'Hll-.   F.COXOMTCS  OF  THE   COAL   INDUSTRY.  243 

tions  were  multiplied.  These  coal  clubs  had  entire  control  of  the 
output  of  their  members  for  a  given  territory  and  were  what  we 
would  term,  district  sales  organizations.  Each  member  sold  his 
coal  direct  to  the  consumer  but  upon  the  advice  and  instruction  of 
the  club  committee.  Invoices  and  contracts  passed  through  the  of- 
fices of  the  clubs  for  verification  of  prices. 

Due  consideration  was  given  by  these  clubs  to  such  condition 
as  variation  in  consumption  during  the  year.  For  instance,  sugar 
factories  paid  a  higher  price  than  other  manufacturers  who  oper- 
ated throughout  the  year;  sugar  factories  operate  only  during  the 
fall  and  winter  when  coal  is  in  demand. 

Each  group  of  owners  selected  representatives  to  look  after 
their  interests — confidence  men,  so  called  because  they  acted  abso- 
lutely with  the  view  of  solving  the  problem  of  the  district  without 
consideration  for  any  selfish  interests  they  might  care  to  serve. 
These  plans  were  carried  out  with  the  concurrence  of  owners  repre- 
senting from  eighty-five  to  ninety-two  per  cent  of  the  tonnage  of 
the  district. 

There  was  dissatisfaction  with  this  plan  from  time  to  time. 
This  was  peculiarly  so  on  the  part  of  furnace  operators  who  owned 
mines  or  had  contracts  with  independent  mines,  these  contracts  call- 
ing for  greater  production  than  the  allotment  authorized  these  mine 
operators  to  produce.  It  was  seen  as  a  result  of  such  complications 
that  consolidations  of  property  would  eliminate  many  obpections 
incident  to  the  numerous  smaller  operations.  A  commission  was 
appointed  and  for  nearly  ten  years  continued  its  work,  but  its  recom- 
mendations were  in  the  end,  not  adopted,  although  the  information 
thus  obtained  was  responsible  for  more  acquisition  'of  property  and 
combinations  of  smaller  character. 

The  individual  coal  and  coke  clubs  became  more  and  more  solidi- 
fied and  by  1890,  when  the  above  mentioned  commission  made  its 
final  report  three  principal  sales  organizations  were  in  operation 
controlling  about  40,000,000  tons  of  annual  output.  Notwithstand- 
ing the  material  advantages  of  the  new  methods,  it ,  became  appar- 
ent that  the  most  satisfactory  results  could  only  be  obtained  if  the 
sale  of  mine  products  would  be  handled  more  advantageously 
through  an  entirely  separate  organization  managed  by  a  firm  of 
salesmen  under  the  direction  of  the  owners.  This  suggestion  re- 
sulted in  the  birth  of  the  Rheinisch  Westfalian  Coal  Syndicate  in 
1892. ~  Its  purpose  and  organization  are  as  follows: 

The  present  contract  expires  December  31,  1915.  Its  purpose 
is  to  buy  and  sell  coal  and  coke  and  to  acquire  mining  fields  and 


244        PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

shares  in  mining  companies.  The  capital  is  $600,000  divided  into 
8,000  bonds  of  $75,  this  capitalization  being  based  on  80,000,000 
tons  of  production.  Each  member  of  the  Syndicate  must  acquire 
one  bond  for  each  10,000  tons  of  annual  output.  The  management 
is  entrusted  to  a  board  of  two  or  more  members  selected  from  the 
directors  and  twelve  members,  three  of  whom  change  every  year. 
The  managers  are  elected  at  the  annual  meeting  of  the  bondholders. 

The  tonnage  allotted  to  each  company  is  fixed  by  a  commission 
of  eight  members.  The  syndicate  buys  and  pays  for  all  the  coal 
covered  by  allotment.  No  coal  can  be  sold  by  any  producer  except 
to  the  syndicate.  Syndicate  members  must  put  the  output  of  all 
mines  in  the  hands  of  the  organization,  whether  owned  wholly  or 
in  part,  except,  of  course,  such  coal  as  is  required  for  mines'  own 
use  as  fuel  or  for  coking  and  briquetting.  There  is  also  excluded 
the  coal  used  in  furnaces,  briquet  plants  and  other  manufacturing 
plants  owned  by  the  mining  company.  The  mining  company  must 
furnish  the  quantities  agreed  to  and  the  syndicate  must  market  it. 
Should  the  syndicate  not  be  able  to  take  the  maximum  quantities 
for  any  mine,  it  will  pay  the  owner  a  sum  of  not  more  than  forty 
cents  per  ton  of  such  shortage.  Mine  owners  may  arrange  with 
other  producers  to  make  up  any  shortage  before  they  are  liable  to 
the  syndicate. 

Mine  owners  receive  monthly  settlement  for  shipments,  an 
average  price  being  fixed  upon  each  grade.  Each  company  is  sub- 
ject to  deductions  if  the  coal  supplied  is  of  inferior  quality.  The 
syndicate  assumes  losses  of  bad  accounts  or  if  coal  is  sold  at 
prices  below  expected  minimum.  By  this  means  all  operators  share 
equally  in  losses  beyond  control  due  to  the  lower  prices  than  were 
contemplated  at  the  time  contracts  were  made. 

The  operating  expenses  for  the  syndicate  are  obtained  in  the 
same  manner.  The  coal  selling  contracts  and  the  general  allot- 
ment of  tonnage  are  made  annually. 

The  mines  owned  by  the  Government  have,  since  1905,  sold 
their  product  in  competition  with  the  syndicate.  It  is  believed  they 
will,  later  on,  join  the  syndicate. 

The  advantages  claimed  are  that  the  syndicate  has  eliminated 
unnecessary  and  suicidal  competition  and  has  placed  the  coal  indus- 
try on  a  basis  which  enables  the  operators  to  produce  coal  at  a  rea- 
sonable profit,  in  consequence  of  which  they  are  able  to  pay  the 
miners  a  fair  wage  and  to  furnish  better  protection  against  injury 
than  was  possible  under  the  highly  competititve  conditions  previ- 
ously existing.  The  increased  profit  has  warranted  the  better 


THE  ECONOMICS  OF  THE  COAL  INDUSTRY.  245 

equipping  of  mines  with  modern  machinery  and  appliances.  The 
advantages  to  the  coal  consumer  has  been  the  elimination  of  fluctua- 
tions in  price  by  depression  to  low  figures  in  a  time  of  surplus  and 
by  rises  to  higher  prices  during  a  time  of  shortage.  Under  the  plan 
adopted  the  consumers  receive  a  more  uniform  price  and  the  large 
consumer  does  not  get  a  low  price  at  the  expense  of  the  small  buyer 
who  may  be  compelled  to  pay  exorbitant  figures.  Through  the  syn- 
dicate all  mines  operate  uniformly,  thereby  preventing  the  shifting 
of  the  working  forces  with  its  entailed  expense  upon  employes  and 
employers  alike. 

The  syndicate  has,  through  the  establishment  of  agencies  and 
arrangement  for  shipping  facilities,  made  possible  an  efficiency  in 
the  marketing  of  coal  which  cannot  be  reached  by  the  individual 
producer.  The  standard  of  preparation  has  been  raised  and  the 
product  of  the  syndicate  mines  can  successfully  compete,  even  at  a 
higher  price,  with  the  product  of  other  countries,  by  reason  of  its 
large  resources  and  ability  to  carry  out  its  contracts. 

It  would  take  columns  to  give  the  details  of  this  organization 
which  now  controls  an  annual  output  of  80,000,000  out  of  the  85,- 
000,000  tons  produced. 

It  is  possible  that  others  will  profit  by  the  great  work  accom- 
plished after  many  years  of  endless  effort. 

Indicative  and  impressive  is  the  inscription  on  the  syndicate 
building  entrance  reading: 

"UNITY  MAKES  STRENGTH." 


The  Condition  of  the  Bituminous  Coal  Industry. 


BY   A.    J     MOORSHEAD, 
ST.  LOUIS,  MO. 


You  will,  I  am  sure,  regret  as  I  do  that  Mr.  B.  F.  Bush,  Presi- 
dent of  the  Missouri  Pacific  Railway,  could  not,  as  the  original 
program  provided,  be  here  and  present  to  you  his  own  ideas  and 
opinions  of  the  present  condition  of  the  bituminous  coal  mining 
industry  of  this  country,  because  his  experience  as  an  executive  and 
operating  officer  in  connection  with  coal  mining  has  been  so  ex- 
tensive (covering  operations  in  the  greater  part  of  the  coal  fields 
from  West  Virginia  and  Pennsylvania  in  the  east  to  the  Pacific 
coast)  that  it  would  be  as  instructive  as  it  would  be  interesting. 

So  varied  are  the  underground  conditions  and  methods  em- 
ployed in  coal  mining  in  the  state  of  Illinois  alone,  both  with  ref- 
erence to  the  seams  being  worked  (from  thirty  inches  to  ten  feet 
in  thickness)  ;  the  wide  range  of  prices  per  ton  paid  to  the  miners; 
difference  in  quality  of  product;  the  variable  cost  of  putting  the 
coal  into  the  cars  for  the  market ;  that  it  makes  a  somewhat  intri- 
cate and  difficult  subject  to  handle,  particularly  when  coupled  as  it 
is  with  the  attempt  in  our  dealings  with  the  Mine  Workers'  organ- 
ization to  make  each  district  fairly  competitive  with  all  others  in  the 
marketing  of  the  product;  therefore,  the  subject  covering  the  entire 
country  can  only  be  reviewed  in  a  general  way. 

With  the  exception  of  two  or  three  states  and  some  particular 
districts  in  some  states  the  industry  was  in  a  reasonably  prosper- 
ous condition  prior  to  the  fall  of  1907,  when  a  general  business 
depression  occurred,  and,  with  others,  the  coal  industry  suffered 
a  material  curtailment  in  production  and  a  general  lowering  of 
values  at  that  time.  During  the  following  year  the  production 
declined  some  64,500,000  tons,  but  this  loss  in  production  has  been 
subsequently  overcome,  and  the  figures  for  1910  record  the  largest 
tonnage  in  the  history  of  the  industry. 

Prices,  however,  recovered  slowly,  but  increases  in  cost  of  pro- 
duction have  been  general  in  every  mining  region,  due  to  the  public 
demand  for  more  careful  mining,  better  protection  to  the  miners 
and  to  the  higher  wage  schedules  which  went  into  effect  during 
1910. 

With  the  further  decline  in  prices  during  the  current  year  the 
situation  has  become  a  serious  one,  and  in  certain  competitive  dis-- 


CONDITION  OF  BITUMINOUS  COAL  INDUSTRY.         247 

tricts  where  competition  is  unusually  keen  and  where  low  prices 
have  steadily  prevailed  for  the  past  four  years,  many  of  the  oper- 
ators are  dangerously  near  complete  bankruptcy,  and  some  means 
must  be  devised  to  relieve  this  situation  if  it  is  possible  of  ac- 
complishment ;  otherwise  the  failure  will  be  seriously  felt  by  manu- 
facturers and  retail  dealers  everywhere. 

Source  of  Information. 

In  order  to  obtain  the  most  authentic  information  possible 
along  these  lines,  the  Secretary  of  this  Congress  sent  out  blanks 
to  all  the  principal  coal  operators  scattered  throughout  the  country, 
making  inquiry  along  the  following  lines : 

First.     Capital  invested  in  business. 

Second.     Average  total  cost  of  production. 

Third.     Average  labor  cost  per  ton  (mine  workmen  only). 

Fourth.     Average  cost  of  administration. 

Fifth.     Average  selling  price  at  mine. 

Sixth.  Estimate  of  increased  cost  necessary  to  meet  demand 
for  conservation. 

Seventh.  Average  depreciation  of  values  per  100  tons  daily 
capacity. 

Eighth.     At  what  price  coal  must  sell. 

Ninth.     What  percentage  of  coal  is  sold  at  a  loss. 

Briefly  stated  these  statements  revealed  the  following  con- 
ditions : 

That  for  every  ton  produced  annually  there  is  an  average 
investment  of  $1.41  in  coal  lands,  machinery,  and  equipment  neces- 
sary to  that  production.  These  statements  show  that  increases  in 
cost  of  production  have  been  general  in  all  States,  varying  from  a 
fraction  of  a  cent  in  States  like  Tennessee  and  Kentucky  to  28  cents 
per  ton  in  the  Southwest.  The  average  increase  is  near  7  cents 
per  ton  in  all  fields.  Indiana  was  benefited  by  steady  work  fol- 
lowing the  last  strike,  and  the  higher  selling  prices  which  prevailed 
at  the  time  enabled  those  operators  to  earn  a  little  profit. 

Increased  selling  prices  are  generally  reported  for  1910  aver- 
aging 4  cents  per  ton,  but  it  is  not  sufficient  to  offset  an  increase  of 
7  cents  per  ton  in  production  costs,  during  the  same  period,  so  the 
year  as  a  whole  shows  a  decline  in  profit. 

During  1910  the  total  cost  of  production  is  estimated  at  $1.07 
per  ton.  The  cost  of  mine  labor  and  mine  supplies  total  95  cents 
per  ton,  and  the  cost  of  administration,  such  as  office  expense,  sales 
expense,  accounting,  insurance  and  taxes,  legal  expense,  etc.,  usually 


248         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

classed  as  general  expense  was  12  cents  per  ton.  This  does  not 
include  interest,  depreciation  or  profit. 

The  average  price  obtained  at  the  time,  was  approximately  $1.11 
per  ton.  The  increased  cost  necessary  to  meet  the  demand  for 
conservation  was  estimated  in  different  fields  from  2  cents  to  15 
cents  per  ton,  with  a  possible  average  of  5  cents  in  the  country 
as  a  whole.  The  depreciation  of  coal  reserves  and  plant  equipment 
would  require  a  fund  of  approximately  4  cents  per  ton. 

The  increased  prices  necessary  to  make  the  business  show  a 
fair  return  on  the  money  invested  ranged  from  5  to  25  cents  per 
ton  in  various  regions.  The  average  increase  requested  would  ap- 
proximate 12  cents  per  ton. 

Reports  Indicate  Astounding  Conditions. 

These  reports  indicate  astounding  conditions  existing  in  the 
bituminous  coal  industry  at  the  present  time.  It  is  undoubtedly 
true  that  there  are  many  individual  operators,  or  even  entire  dis- 
tricts, where  unusual  mining  conditions,  favorable  quality  of  coal, 
proximity  to  large  consuming  centers,  or  scientific  management, 
enable  certain  companies  to  show  profits  ev^n  under  present  condi- 
tions, but  it  is  also  true  that  there  are  many  more  showing  heavy 
losses,  and  an  industry  of  so  great  magnitude  must  be  considered 
as  a  unit  in  a  matter  of  this  kind.  Let  us,  therefore,  make  a  closer 
study  of  the  more  important  questions,  such  as  production  and 
consumption,  costs  and  realization  and  their  effect  upon  the  in- 
dustry as  a  whole. 

Statistics  show  that  while  our  bituminous  coal  production  in- 
creased rapidly  from  nothing  in  1821  to  1,111,156  tons  in  1842; 
to  10,625,381  in  1865;  to  105,268,963  in  1891;  to  306,138,096  in 
1906;  and  to  415,500,000  tons  in  1910;  our  consumption  kept  ahead 
of  or  apace  with  production  until  1891.  In  1821  consumption  was 
19,617  tons  in  excess  of  production ;  in  1842  it  was  123,879  tons  in 
excess  of  production;  but  in  1891  the  total  consumption  was  only 
105,016,407,  or  252,556  less  than  production,  and  the  difference 
has  steadily  increased  until  in  1906  consumption  was  6,002,051  less 
than  production.  The  excess  of  production  over  consumption  has 
steadily  increased  each  year,  and  has  resulted  with  mines  operating 
to  a  restricted  capacity. 

A  further  example  of  our  over-production  and  still  greater 
over-capacity  was  demonstrated  during  the  strike  period  of  1910 
in  Illinois,  Indiana  and  the  Southwest: 


CONDITION  OF  BITUMINOUS  COAL  INDUSTRY.         249 

Illinois  was  idle  six  months  of  the  year,  but  produced  45,900,- 
246  tons,  as  compared  with  50,904,990  the  previous  year,  working 
twelve  months. 

Indiana  was  idle  some  thirty  days  and  produced  18,389815,  as 
compared  with  14,834,259  in  1909. 

Oklahoma,  Arkansas,  Kansas  and  Missouri  were  also  idle  six 
months  in  1910,  due  to  the  strike,  and  the  production  showed  an 
average  decrease  of  only  20%  under  the  figures  for  1909. 

The  possible  capacities  of  West  Virginia  mines  is  fully  75% 
over  the  present  total  production.  The  Pittsburgh. and  No.  8  Ohio 
districts  are  reduced  to  30%  operation  during  three  to  four  months 
of  each  year,  while  navigation  is  closed  on  the  lakes.  There  are 
very  few  properties  that  have  operated  over  225  working  days  per 
annum  during  the  past  three  years. 

This  over-production  and  over-capacity  to  produce  has  resulted 
in  a  ruinous  competition  to  obtain  business.  Many  of  our  coal  prop- 
erties have  fixed  charges  in  the  nature  of  bonds  and  other  obli- 
gations, such  as  minimum  royalties,  etc.,  which  necessitate  maxi- 
mum production,  and  in  many  cases  the  management  figure  their 
losses  less  by  taking  the  low  prices  and  operating  full  time  than 
by  obtaining  their  proportion  of  profitable  domestic  business. 

The  development  of  so  many  new  high-tonnage  plants  in 
recent  years  has  also  had  a  marked  effect  upon  the  industry.  When 
it  is  realized  that  our  production  and  consumption  to  date  have 
practically  doubled*  every  ten  years,  the  large  increase  in  the  number 
of  new  mines  can  be  appreciated.  The  "deadwork"  haulage, 
drainage,  and  ventilation  costs  are  always  lower  in  new  develop- 
ment, on  account  of  the  concentrated  area  under  operation,  and 
they  are  able  to  produce  coal  much  cheaper  than  their  older  com- 
petitors. They  fix  the  prices  in  the  markets  which  must  be  met 
by  the  other  mines,  but  in  time  they  have  the  same  situation  to 
face.  To  meet  this  competition,  underground  development  is 
too  often  carried  on  in  such  parts  of  the  mines  as  can  be  made  to 
produce  cheaply  and  in  order  to  escape  the  heavy  yardage  prices, 
excessively  wide  entries  are  driven,  and  this  condition  coupled 
with  the  narrowing  of  pillars  in  order  to  lessen  the  cost  of  opera- 
tion, ultimately  causes  heavy  falls  and  squeezing  to  such  an  extent 
that  the  mines  are  robbed  of  half  of  what  would  otherwise  be  their 
natural  existence,  and  in  their  early  abandonment  large  acreages 
of  coal  are  wasted  without  hope  of  recovery. 


250        PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

Statistics  show  that  the  average  prices  received  at  the  mines 
during  the  past  seven  years  are  as  follows: 

1904          1905          1906          1907          1908          1909          1910 
1.10          1.06  1.11  1.14  1.12  1.07          1.11      est. 

The  average  price  for  the  entire  period  has  been  $1.10  and 
the  fluctuation  between  the  maximum  and  minimum  prices  has  been 
only  8  cents  per  ton.  It  is  also  interesting  to  note  that  the  prices 
for  1910  and  1904  and  the  average  price  for  the  period  are  prac- 
tically identical. 

Production  Cost  Increases.  Seven  Cents  in  1910. 

During  1910  the  increased  cost  of  production  as  compared  with 
the  previous  year  is  estimated  at  7  cents  per  ton  in  all  fields. 
Some  idea  of  the  increased  cost  of  producing  coal  can  be  obtained 
from  the  following  table,  which  shows  the  mining  rates  in  the  four 
largest  States  operating  with  organized  labor.  All  other  districts 
show  similar  increase  but  the  amount  is  difficult  to  ascertain : 

Base         Ind.  Thin  Rock 

Rate  Mine  Bitum.  Vein  Ohio 

111.  Run.  Lump.  W.  Va.  Lump. 

April  1,  1898,  to  April  1,  1900 40c  40c  66c  66c  66c 

April  1,  1900,  to  April  1,  1903 49  49  80  80  80 

April  1,  1903,  to  April  1,  1904 55  55  90  90  90 

April  1,  1904,  to  April  1,  1906 52  52  85  85  85 

April  1,  1906,  to  April  1,  1910 55  55  90  90  90 

April  1,  1910,  to  April  1,  1912 58  58  95  95  95 

Increase,   14  years .18c  18c  29c  29c  29c 

Equiv.    on    run    of    mine    basis 18  18  18.74         18.74       18.74 

The  above  increase  applies  only  to  the  "mining  rate" — that  is, 
the  amount  paid  to  the  miner  for  loading  one  ton  of  coal  at  the  face, 
and  proportionately  higher  wages  are  paid  to  all  other  mine  work- 
ers. The  full  increase  in  cost  of  labor  per  ton  over  this  period  is, 
therefore,  approximately  27  cents  per  ton,  and  approximately  9 
cents  of  this  increase  has  been  taken  since  1904. 

With  prices  practically  stationary  during  this  same  period  the 
profit  to  the  operator  shows  a  net  decrease  of  9  cents  per  ton. 

We  have  already  stated  that  for  every  ton  produced  annually 
there  is  an  average  investment  of  $1.41  in  coal  lands,  machinery, 
and  equipment  necessary  to  that  production. 

Based  on  an  annual  production  of  415,000,000  tons  of  bitu- 
minous coal,  there  is  an  investment  in  the  business  of  some  $585,- 
000,000.  An  investment  in  an  industry  of  this  nature,  carrying  the 
risks  to  life  and  property  which  the  mining  industry  does,  and  the 
hazard  of  faulty  conditions  of  seam,  which  no  man  can  definitely 
foresee,  should  net  at  least  10%  in  return  as  interest  on  the  capital 


CONDITION   OF  BITUMINOUS  COAL  INDUSTRY.         251 

invested,  after  setting  aside  a  sufficient  amount — estimated  at  4 
cents  per  ton — to  cover  depreciation  of  equipment  and  exhausted 
coal  lands. 

The  mining  industry  should  net  to  the  owner  annual  earnings 
of  $75,000,000.  They  earned  $16,600,000  in  1910,  and  the  current 
year  will  show  still  further  reductions.  In  other  words  our  coal 
operators  are  absorbing  as  losses  in  excess  of  $58,500,000  per 
annum,  or  slightly  in  excess  of  14  cents  per  ton. 
Solutions  Suggested. 

Over-production  is  the  cause  of  this  extremely  deplorable  situ- 
ation. It  has  created  a  destroying  competition  in  which  only  the 
strongest  can  survive.  It  has  caused  a  general  unrest  in  the  in- 
dustry and  dissatisfaction  to  mine  owners  and  mine  workers  alike 
and  the  question  before  us  is  how  this  over-production  may  be 
taken  care  of  and  the  business  placed  on  a  remunerative  basis. 
Two  solutions  are  suggested. 

First.  The  creation  of  district  sales  agencies  to  handle  the 
entire  product.  Those  agencies  would  control  the  total  output  and 
name  prices  which  would  return  a  fair  profit  on  the  investment  and 
at  the  same  time  permit  the  necessary  expenditure  for  conservation 
of  resources  and  careful  and  safe  mining.  Such  agencies  would 
result  in  a  very  large  reduction  of  the  present  sales  cost  and  by 
concentrating  the  mining  operations  the  ultimate  cost  to  the  con- 
sumer would  probably  show  little  increase.  These  agencies  could 
maintain  a  more  uniform  distribution  and  by  concentrated  effort 
could  probably  reach  new  markets  which  are  not  being  supplied 
from  the  United  States  at  present. 

This  plan  would  require  the  alteration  of  the  Sherman  anti- 
trust law  and  the  creation  of  an  interstate  coal  commission.  The 
commission  would  have  to  pass  upon  the  justness  of  prices  estab- 
lished by  the  various  district  agencies,  to  see  that  owners  obtained 
fair  prices  only,  and  to  hear  the  public  voice  in  reference  to  such 
matters.  The  commission  should  also  control  the  opening  of  new 
mines  in  such  a  way  as  to  keep  production  and  consumption  apace 
with  one  another. 

Second.  The  Government  could  assist  in  the  development  of 
foreign  export  trade.  A  large  percentage  of  the  total  production 
of  this  country  is  available  for  profitable  export,  and  by  directing 
the  surplus  production  from  Eastern  Pennsylvania  and  Eastern 
Virginia,  which  is  now  encroaching  upon  the  trade  formerly  en- 
joyed by  Illinois,  Indiana,  and  Ohio,  the  solution  would  at  least  be 
partly  reached. 


252         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

Other  countries  have  had  their  coal  problems  similar  in  all 
respects  to  our  own  as  now  existing. 

Great  Britain  met  it  by  the  most  careful  of  mining  methods 
and  preparation  of  the  product;  and  combination  with  transporta- 
tion interests  has  gained  for  her  the  markets  of  the  world  for  her 
surplus,  at  highly  remunerative  prices,  and  this  result  is  only  pos- 
sible by  continuous  operations  and  large  export  shipments.  British 
exports  have  been: 

In  1907..  63,600,947  tons 

In  1908 62,547,175  tons 

In  1909   63,076,799  tons 

In  1910   67,085,476  tons 

It  took  Germany  many  years  to  perfect  a  coal  syndicate,  which 
under  a  single  sales  agency  with  the  co-operation  of  the  govern- 
ment, has  produced  substantial  returns  to  the  mining  companies, 
and  at  the  same  time  increased  the  export  tonnage;  and  there 
was  shipped  in  this  particular  class  of  trade : 

In   1909 ". 10,321,536  tons 

In   1910 10,963,195  tons 

In   1911.. 12,614,952   tons 

Belgium,  mining  in  places  only  1 1  inches  of  coal,  and  at  depths 
exceeding  3,500  feet,  had  problems  to  solve  more  serious  than  ours. 
She  met  them  by  consolidation  and  single  sales  agencies,  and 
these  agencies  get  prices  which  represent  fair  returns  in  capital  in- 
vestment. They  get  them  by  co-operation  with  the  French  and 
German  syndicates. 

The  French  laws,  as  we  understand  them,  are  much  in  line 
with  our  own  trust  laws,  but  there,  too,  syndicates  exist  and  regu- 
late prices  and  work  in  harmony  with  the  other  continental 
syndicates. 

The  second  solution,  therefore,  of  the  problem  lies  in  the  ex- 
portation of  our  surplus  production.  The  coal  tributary  to  the 
Atlantic  and  Pacific  seaboards  is  the  equal  in  quality  of  that  pro- 
duced abroad.  Government  assistance  in  the  shape  of  a  bonus  or 
subsidy  would,  therefore,  not  only  solve  the  coal  problem,  but  also 
the  question  of  the  rehabilitation  of  the  American  mercantile  marine. 

The  above  plans  are  simply  suggestions  briefly  outlined  for 
consideration  by  this  convention  and  those  interested  in  the 
industry. 

It  is  self-evident  that  the  operators  must  join  in  a  plan  which 
will  protect  their  investment  and  at  the  same  time  permit  healthy 
and  sane  competition. 


CONDITION  OF  BITUMINOUS  COAL  INDUSTRY.         253 

It  should  be  the  duty  of  this  Congress  to  carefully  consider 
ways  and  means  of  working  out  the  problem ;  additional  legisla- 
tion is  necessary,  and  capital,  together  with  labor  and  the  consumer, 
should  appreciate  the  benefits  to  be  derived  from  placing  an  in- 
dustry of  so  great  magnitude  upon  a  substantial  basis. 

Germany  and  Great  Britain  have  met  the  same  conditions 
successfully  by  extending  the  necessary  aid  to  their  coal  industries. 
Is  not  the  coal  industry  of  the  United  States  entitled  to  the  same 
consideration? 

Mining  Congress  Can  Bring  About  Relief. 

Wonderful  results  have  been  accomplished  for  the  benefit  of 
agriculture  by  the  National  Government  appropriating  from  $20,- 
000,000  to  $40,000.000  per  year  for  the  last  twenty  years  for  that 
particular  industry,  yet  mining — important  and  hazardous  as  it  is — 
has  received  but  little  consideration.  This  organization  can,  by 
thorough,  concerted  and  determined  action,  not  only  arouse  public 
interest  in  our  cause,  but  the  state  and  National  legislators  will, 
beyond  doubt,  when  the  conditions  of  the  industry  are  properly 
made  known  to  them,  afford  relief  no  less  generously  than  Great 
Britain  and  other  foreign  governments  have  done. 

Now,  Mr.  Chairman  and  Gentlemen,  there  is  only  one  way 
that  we  can  expect  to  get  relief,  and  that  is  not  wholly  and  solely 
by  the  preparation  of  papers  like  this  nor  by  oratory  on  this  stage. 
Both  are  necessary  to  arouse  interest,  but  what  we  should  do  as 
coalmen  is  to  try  and  make  this  Association,  this  Congress,  strong 
as  it  is,  more  powerful,  by  adding  to  its  numbers  all  other  coalmen 
it  is  possible  to  convert  and  bring  into  its  ranks.  Then  by  the 
proper  application  of  pressure  that  we  could  then  bring  to  bear  with 
the  aid  of  our  friends  from  the  Western  States  engaged  in  other 
classes  of  mining,  and  we  assisting  them  as  they  do  us  in  things  de- 
serving, we  will  accomplish  what  we  go  after;  and  I  hope  that  the 
coalmen  of  Illinois,  a  competitive  field,  and  in  fact  the  country,  that 
have  been  so  seriously  affected  and  depressed  by  the  competitive 
conditions  surrounding  us,  on  matters  that  we  seemingly  are  unable 
to  control  ourselves,  that  they  will  join  this  organization  and  make 
it  strong.  I  hope  the  organization  will  be  so  changed  that  it  will 
have  State  organizations.  Then  we  can  get  together,  formulate 
plans  to  do  business  in  a  way  that  I  am  sure  the  Government 
representatives  will  permit.  (Applause.) 


The  Condition  of  the  Bituminous  Coal  Mining  Industry. 


BY  WALTER  S.   BOGLE, 
CHICAGO,   ILL. 


Mr.  Chairman  and  Gentlemen  of  the  Convention: — I  was  not 
aware  until  night  before  last  that  I  would  be  expected  to  address 
this  convention.  I  was  not  present  at  your  session  last  evening,  but 
from  what  I  have  heard  it  seems  to  me  that  conditions  and  relief 
have  already  been  very  ably  presented,  and  as  a  result  I  can  only 
touch  crudely  and  briefly  on  the  matter  and  perhaps  repeat  some- 
thing that  has  already  been  told  you. 

The  condition  of  the  coal  trade  is  such  a  painful  subject  that  I 
don't  care  to  dwell  on  it.  The  important  question  in  my  mind  is 
relief.  Who  has  got  it,  and  who  is  going  to  lead  us  out  of  the  wil- 
derness? Many  bright  minds  have  given  this  subject  careful  con- 
sideration, and  many  plans  have  been  presented,  but  when  analyzed 
they  present  one  of  two  alternatives — either  a  company  large 
enough  and  with  capital  enough  to  absorb  all  operations  in  a  dis- 
trict or  state  or  else  combinations  among  the  operators  themselves. 
The  first  alternative  is  apparently  impossible,  because  the  credit  of 
the  coal  trade  has  declined  to  such  an  extent  that  the  public  re- 
fuses to  buy  coal  securities  and  no  financier  can  be  found  able  and 
willing  to  underwrite  them.  Another  difficulty  has  presented  itself 
along  that  line,  and  that  is  there  are  men  in  the  coal  trade  who  are 
proud  of  their  long  and  honorable  career,  who  have  built  up  a 
valuable  clientage,  and  who  refuse  to  lose  their  identity.  Who  can 
say  {hem  nay?  It  is  a  privilege  that  belongs  to  every  American 
citizen,  and  I  hope  it  always  will,  furthermore,  I  hope  it  will  be 
encouraged,  because  it  is  along  those  lines  that  I  believe  we  will 
get  the  best  development  in  our  commercial  life.  Of  the  other 
plans  presented,  many  have  merit,  many  would  fit  the  situation, 
but  they  all  violate  the  Sherman  anti-trust  law,  and  that  is  the 
end  of  them.  Until  the  Sherman  anti-trust  law  can  be  changed 
or  modified  I  can  see  but  little  relief  in  sight.  The  Sherman  anti- 
trust law,  like  many  other  laws  on  our  statutes,  was  passed  hastily 
and  without  due  consideration  of  the  results  that  it  would  bring 
about.  The  object  of  the  law  was  good,  and  that  was  to  restrict 
combinations  and  every  self  respecting  business  man  or  citizen  of 
this  country  will  stand  for  a  law  that  will  accomplish  that.  They 
want  such  a  law  on  the  statute  books,  but  in  order  to  accomplish 


CONDITION    OF    BITUMINOUS    COAL    INDUSTRY.       255 

that,  the  Sherman  anti-trust  law  compelled  unbridled  competition, 
and  in  its  actual  operation  has  been  bringing  about  the  very  object 
for  which  it  was  passed  to  prevent.  Unbridled  competition  means 
the  survival  of  the  fittest,  the  strong  against  the  weak,  the  weak 
falling  by  the  wayside  and  being  absorbed  by  the  strong,  and  while 
the  process  is  slow  it  is  none  the  less  sure,  and  the  ultimate  result 
is  a  combination  of  interests  similar  but  perhaps  on  different  lines 
than  the  law  was  passed  to  prevent.  In  many  industries  in  this 
country  the  law  has  brought  the  individuals  up  to  where  they  have 
had  to  make  a  choice  as  between  bankruptcy  and  violation  of  that 
law,  and  they  have  not  hesitated  to  violate  the  law  and  take  the 
consequences,  if  they  were  caught,  rather  than  to  go  into  bank- 
ruptcy, and  I  am  not  brave  enough  to  blame  them.  But  any  law, 
the  operation  of  which  produces  such  results,  is  wrong.  It  is  a 
damage  to  any  community  and  should  be  changed. 

I  believe  I  have  been  a  consistent  friend  of  labor  since  I  was  a 
boy,  but  I  cannot  resist  calling  attention  to  the  difference  in  laws 
governing  capital  and  business  in  this  country,  and  the  laws  govern- 
ing labor, — one  compels  unbridled  competition,  the  other  permits 
unrestricted  combination.  Now,  few  of  us  object  to  labor  organ- 
izing; we  look  upon  it  as  a  necessity,  at  least  many  of  us  do,  but 
the  organization  of  labor  without  any  restrictions  whatever,  has 
legalized  the  greatest  trust  that  ever  was  known  to  man.  It  is 
governed  by  the  same  human  minds,  the  same  human  passions,  the 
same  human  greed,  the  same  human  selfishness  that  governs  any  un- 
restricted combination,  and  it  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  that  it  is 
rapidly  developing  all  of  the  obnoxious  and  all  of  the  bad  features 
of  an  unrestricted  combination. 

The  problem  or  the  work  that  is  laid  out  for  us  appears  to  me 
to  be  a  campaign  of  education,  which  will  bring  about  a  change  in 
this  law.  That  may  seem  quite  an  undertaking  to  many  of  you, 
but  it  is  not  as  great  an  undertaking  as  it  would  appear  to  be  on 
first  consideration,  and  the  time  is  ripe  for  it.  The  business  of  this 
country  is  largely  paralyzed  by  the  uncertainty  of  how  that  law  is 
going  to  be  applied.  The  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States  has 
said  that  a  reasonable  combination  is  all  right,  but  the  construction 
of  the  word  "reasonable"  would  vary  as  frequently  as  there  are 
"individuals,"  as  the  construction  of  it  would  be  governed  largely 
by  personal  interest.  But  there  is  a  statement  on  the  part  of  the 
highest  court  in  the  land  that  under  certain  conditions  combina- 
tions are  reasonable  and  should  be  enjoyed,  and  it  is  right  and 
proper  that  Congress  should  define  absolutely  and  clearly  what  is 


256        PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

reasonable.  The  American  people  will  uphold  you  in  that  demand. 
The  American  people  have  never  wilfully  visited  any  unmerited 
hardship  on  any  individuals  or  any  corporations,  or  any  body  of 
men,  and  they  never  will  when  they  understand  a  question  thor- 
oughly. Where  they  have  been  educated  to  understand  a  ques- 
tion their  decisions  have  been  invariably  right.  A  very  good  proof 
of  that  is  this,  that  today  there  is  a  rank  violation  of  this  law,  that 
is  not  only  approved  of,  but  is  upheld  by  them,  a  violation  of  this 
law  that  has  been  declared  such  by  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United 
States.  It  is  not  only  approved  of  and  upheld  by  the  people  of  the 
United  States,  but  it  is  approved  of  and  upheld  by  one  of  the 
greatest  executive  and  I  might  say  governing  bodies  of  the  United 
States,  and  that  is  the  railroads  of  this  country  are  allowed  by  the 
Interstate  Commerce  Commission  to  establish  uniform  rates,  or 
agreed  rates,  on  freight  and  passengers,  and  when  they  do  it  in  my 
opinion  the  Interstate  Commerce  Commission  take  the  only  practical 
and  sensible  course  that  is  open  to  them.  It  is  a  necessity.  Without 
it  the  railroads  would  be  unable  to  furnish  the  necessary  facilities 
to  accommodate  the  commerce  of  the  country  and  a  continuance  of 
unbridled  competition  between  them  would  result  in  bankruptcy  for 
many  if  not  all.  Either  of  which  would  be  a  public  calamity.  Every- 
body would  feel  it,  and  there  was  only  one  practical  course  open 
and  that  was  a  reasonable  combination,  and  that  is  what  they  are 
acting  under  today.  Now  if  that  is  necessary  for  the  railroad 
world,  certainly  it  is  equally  necessary  for  the  commercial  world. 
If  the  railroad  world  is  entitled  to  that  consideration,  then  the  com- 
mercial world  is  entitled  to  that  consideration.  I  don't  wish  to 
disturb  that  situation.  On  the  contrary,  I  would  lend  what  assist- 
ance I  could  to  maintaining  it.  I  simply  refer  to  it  as  an  example 
of  how  this  matter  works  out,  and  of  the  necessity  that  exists  and 
the  many  arguments  that  you  have  at  your  command  to  bring  the 
pressure  necessary  to  remove  this  burden  which  is  rapidly  becoming 
greater  than  the  disease.  (Applause.) 


Sherman  Anti-Trust  Law  With  Special  Reference  to  the  Coal 

Mining  Industry. 

BY  D.  W.  KUHN, 
PITTSBURGH,  PA. 

Down  in  Tennessee,  a  good  many  years  ago,  the  supreme 
court  of  that  state,  in  its  interpretation  of  the  exemption  laws, 
held  in  an  elaborate  opinion  that  a  mule  was  a  horse,  and  has  ever 
since  stuck  to  that  decision.  The  Supreme  Court  of  the  United 
States,  with  a  purpose  unquestioned,  in  its  interpretation  of  the 
Sherman  act  in  the  last  twenty  years,  has  sometimes  as  much  as 
said  that  a  mule  was  a  horse  and  at  other  times  that  a  mule  was 
not  a  horse.  The  country  at  large  at  the  present  time  entertains  a 
similar  hazy  and  uncertain  opinion  of  that  act  and  the  baffling 
decisions  on  it.  There  seems  to  be,  however,  one  striking  exception, 
and  that  is,  the  distinguished  Attorney  General  of  the  United 
States,  who  entertains  a  different  opinion.  He  believes  that  every 
horse  is  a  mule,  and  for  that  reason  should  be  subjected  to  "con- 
dign punishment."  One  of  the  mysteries  connected  with  this  statute 
is  that  no  one  has  been  able  to  maintain  the  same  opinion  about  it 
for  any  length  of  time.  The  authors  of  the  act  were  not  even  of 
the  same  opinion  as  to  what  it  meant.  The  political  party  that 
fathered  it  has  sought  to  change  it.  The  Supreme  Court  of  the 
United  States  in  1895,  m  tne  Knight  case,  held  in  effect  that  in- 
dustry— production — was  not  within  the  statute,  and  then  reversed 
itself  in  other  decisions.  Some  of  our  statesmen  have  see-sawed 
on  the  question — have  at  one  time  favored  a  liberal  construction  'of 
the  act  and  at  another  time  insisted  that  it  should  be  given  a  strict 
and  literal  construction.  The  Department  of  Justice  through  suc- 
cessive changes  of  party  politics,  however,  maintained  for  a  long 
time  the  same  opinion.  The  Attorney  Generals  of  the  United 
States .  from  the  Cleveland  administration  down  to  the  present  ad- 
ministration have  held  that  the  application  now  sought  to  be  made 
of  the  act  was  not  a  valid  one.  And  ex- President  Roosevelt,  who 
started  the  so-called  anti-trust  proceedings,  has  condemned  it  in  a 
pointed  and  emphatic  declaration.  "So  incapable  of  enforcement," 
to  quote  ex-President  Roosevelt,  "as  to  make  decent  men  violators 
of  the  law  against  their  will  and  to  put  a  premium  on  the  behavior 
of  willful  wrongdoers." 

In  view  of  all  this,  is  it  mere  industrial  resentment  that  inquires 


258         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

"Where  are  we  at?"  And  where  such  meandering  and  divergence 
of  opinion  are  held  by  statesmen  and  the  high  courts  of  the  country 
is  it  to  be  wondered  that  the  common  mind  of  the  country,  engaged 
in  the  battle  and  strife  of  competition,  is  bewildered? 

The  passage  of  the  Sherman  act  was  a  combination  of  militant 
morality  and  political  expediency — the  worst  kind  of  a  combina- 
tion. The  literal  enforcement  of  that  drastic  statute  would  have 
blighted  industry  as  nothing  else  ever  did  in  a  modern  commercial 
country.  There  is  nothing  capricious  in  the  development  of  in- 
dustry and  commerce.  They  are  always  a  growth ;  any  extrinsic 
attacks  quickly  disturb  them,  and  efforts  looking  to  their  revival  are 
always  prolonged.  "Military  morals  can  direct  the  axe  to  cut  down 
the  tree  but  it  knows  nothing  of  the  quiet  force  by  which  the  forest 
grows."  The  concentration  of  industry,  the  adoption  of  corporate 
combination  in  business  is  not  the  secret  method  of  some  monster 
of  finance  whom  we  have  pictured  to  us  as  the  acme  of  everything 
gross — it  is  the  natural  and  necessary  attendant  on  industry  and 
commerce  in  the  wonderful  inventions  that  multiplied  and  intensi- 
fied production,  and  which  has  almost  put  the  markets  of  the  world 
at  the  entrance  of  every  plant  and  mine.  But  laws  that  run 
counter  to  the  spirit  of  the  age  are  remembered  in  a  short  time 
as  only  so  much  legislative  bric-a-brac.  This  country  has  had  an 
experience  of  an  unfortunate  kind  with  fiat  money.  And  the  en- 
actment and  maintenance  of  drastic  laws  against  industrial  cor- 
poration and  corporate  combination  in  line  with  the  best  practice 
of  all  commercial  countries  will  be  no  more  effective  than  the 
solemn  government  stamp  of  a  dollar  on  a  piece  of  stiff  paper. 
Both  are  species  of  legislative  paternalism  that  sooner  or  later  die 
out ;  both  belong  to  earlier  and  cruder  ages,  and  are  found  discarded 
by  other  countries  which  are  guided  by  practical  experience  and  by 
enlightened  methods.  The  trend  of  commerce  and  trade  in  the 
same  form  or  mold  is  worldwide.  Local  peculiarities  and  pro- 
vincial customs  fall  away.  The  use  of  similar  inventions,  similar 
money  markets,  similar  competing  trade  conditions  arise  in  all 
countries  so  that  industry  and  commerce  are  becoming  a  uniform 
industry  and  commerce. 

No  man,  no  body  of  men,  who  consider  the  question  in  its 
broad  aspects  can  believe  that  the  Sherman  a-ct  was  passed  to 
meet  the  conditions  of  the  great  and  growing  industries  of  this 
country.  Certainly  no  one  can  read  the  act  and  say  that  the 
conservation  of  industry  and  commerce  is  contemplated  in  it ; 
and  that  defect  alone  is  sufficient  to  warrant  its  prompt  repeal  or 


SHERMAN  LAW  AND  THE  COAL  MINING  INDUSTRY.     259 

amendment.  Voltaire,  I  believe,  said  that  the  repressive  laws  of 
a  country  were  the  true  measure  of  its  backwardness,  and  by  that 
test  our  country  has  reached  its  majority  in  ignorance,  for  the 
act  has  been  a  law  just  twenty-one  years. 

To  empirically  declare,  as  do  the  provisions  of  the  Sherman 
law,  that  combinations  in  restraint  of  all  forms  of  competition  are 
not  lawful,  is  so  sweeping,  so  un-American  in  spirit  that  we  do  not 
wonder  that  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States  resorted  to  the 
broad  principles  of  construction  in  seeking  to  give  a  meaning  to  it. 
Conduct  which  was  heretofore  regarded  as  exemplary  is  con- 
demned under  the  prohibitions  of  the  Sherman  act  in  the  same  way 
that  actual  fraud  is  condemned ;  there  is  no  line  of  demarkation  be- 
tween virtuous  and  vicious  acts.  The  law  in  its  sweeping  con- 
demnations does  not  recognize  that  there  is  such  a  thing  as  virtu- 
ous corporate  conduct.  At  one  time  the  members  of  the  convention 
in  the  French  Revolution  held  that  an  individual  had  no  right  to  be 
either  virtuous  or  celebrated  in  their  eyes.  The  noisy  proponents 
of  the  anti-trust  laws,  like  the  ancient  Bardolph,  with  more  vigor 
than  understanding,  declare  that  the  business  of  the  country  has  no 
right  to  be  either  virtuous  or  prosperous. 

Sherman  Act  Repressive,  Not  Remedial. 

The  Sherman  act  is  not  in  effect  a  remedial  law,  but  one  of 
repression.  It  was  passed  in  the  heyday  of  corporate  orgies  that 
followed  the  Civil  War,  and  it  was  prompted  by  something  of  a 
revengeful  spirit — that  the  business  of  the  country  at  that  time 
must  be  impressed  with  a  wholesome  terror  of  the  law.  It  was  the 
law  militant  in  all  its  harshness.  Terror  is  the  keynote  to  that 
statute,  and  it  was  its  sweeping  and  terror  inspiring  provisions 
that  made  it  a  dead  letter  for  so  many  years.  Those  who  advocate 
its  enforcement  are  fired  by  the  same  noble  zeal  that  inspires  the 
Western  town  marshal,  in  "shooting  up"  the  town  for  one  "bad 
man,"  to  kill  a  dozen  of  the  best  citizens.  It  is  a  good  illustration  of 
how  not  to  draft  a  Federal  statute  touching  anything  as  delicate  and 
important  as  the  business  of  the  country. 

Seth  Low  raised  a  true  question  when  he  asked,  will  the  "people 
who  have  constituted  the  greatest  republic  in  history  by  the  com- 
bination of  many  states,  even  for  a  moment,  deny  to  its  own  com- 
mercial agencies  the  opportunity  of  giving  better  service  by  pro- 
ceeding along  the  same  line?" 

Many  of  the  states  have  enacted  so-called  anti-trust  laws,  pat- 
terned after  the  Sherman  law,  the  literal  enforcement  of  which 


260         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

would  blight  commerce  and  industry  as  would  the  plague.  They  are 
kept  on  the  statute  books  as  a  token  of  political  probity  and  as  a 
legislative  threat  against  industry,  and  not  as  a  constructive  policy 
to  regulate  commerce. 

The  Sherman  law  has  developed  another  phase  which  in  time 
will  only  breed  trouble.  The  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States 
has  stated  that  the  Sherman  law  covers  combinations  and  con- 
spiracies of  labor  as  well  as  of  cases-  of  that  kind  in  business  and 
industry.  Labor  in  its  reaches  of  development  has  infringed  the 
provisions  of  the  Sherman  act.  We  feel  sure  that  there  will  be 
no  prosecutions  of  the  so-called  labor  trusts,  and  it  would  require 
a  stretch  of  imagination  to  fancy  the  beginning  of  proceedings  of 
that  character  in  political  years.  We  do  not  dispute  the  right  of 
labor  to  organize,  but  we  do  insist  that  the  same  law  and  the  same 
rule  of  conduct  which  have  been  prescribed  for  both  should  be  en- 
forced against  both  in  the  same  way ;  and  if  it  is  not  so  enforced,  we 
not  only  have  a  bad  law  on  our  statutes  but  we  have  adopted  a  policy 
of  insincerity  and  hypocrisy  in  the  enforcement  of  law. 

Any  statute  or  law  that  inspires  fear  or  apprehension  in  busi- 
ness or  industry,  which  can  stand  the  test  that  is  universally  re- 
garded as  lawful,  is  a  menace  to  the  country,  and  the  Sherman  Act 
today  is  a  wet  blanket  upon  industry.  We  are  told  now  that  what- 
ever rough  edges  the  statute  had,  the  two  recent  important  de- 
cisions have  made  its  meaning  clear,  but  the  fact  that  the  most 
casual  reference  to  the  status  of  the  law  by  either  the  President  or 
the  Attorney  General  directs  the  attention  of  the  whole  country, 
shows  that. there  is  honest  doubt  as  to  the  rule  of  conduct  now  pre- 
scribed. In  earlier  times  every  man  had  his  confessor  to  help  him 
meet  the  exactions  of  his  overlord ;  today  every  man  engaged  in 
business  or  industry,  or  hoping  that  he  may  stay  there,  is  seeking 
his  lawyer  for  advice,  but  unfortunately,  the  lawyer  is  more  in  the 
dark  than  his  client. 

No  one  can  read  the  decisions  of  Chief  Justice  White  in  the 
Standard  Oil  and  Tobacco  cases  without  being  impressed  with  a 
sincerity  of  purpose  worthy  of  that  high  court,  but  the  resort  to  well- 
known  rules  of  statutory  construction  cannot  in  the  nature  of  things 
formulate  a  constructive  policy  for  the  commerce  of  the  country, 
and,  say  what  we  will,  it  leaves  the  rights  of  the  industries  in  an 
insoluble  dilemma.  The  trouble  is  not  so  much  with  the  court  as 
with  ourselves;  we  expected  the  Supreme  Court  out  of  a  single 
statement  of  facts  in  the  cases  before  it  to  formulate  a  policy  which 
would  at  once  comprehend  all  possible  cases,  and  because  the  court 


SHERMAN   LAW  AND  THE  COAL  MINING  INDUSTRY.     261 

failed  to  promulgate  a  comprehensive  policy  from  its  interpreta- 
tion of  that  cumbersome  statute  it  is  criticized.  The  court  was 
never  intended  or  fitted  to  perform  such  functions.  We  pass  crude 
and  impossible  economic  laws — economic  laws  which  have  their 
origin  in  some  fit  of  public  indignation  or  emotion — and  throw  on 
the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States  the  burden  of  making 
them  intelligible,  flexible  and  responsive  to  the  conditions  of  the 
country.  We  seek  to  have  the  court  exercise  powers  never  granted 
to  it  and  make  it  assume  a  task  impossible  for  it  to  fulfill.  But  the 
court,  no  doubt,  in  the  two  recent  decisions  made  a  rift  in  the 
cloud  of  confusion  and  uncertainty  regarding  the  statute. 
Belongs  to  Period  of  Blood-Letting  in  Medicine. 

We  are  told  now  that  we  must  go  back  to  the  period  of  old 
fashioned,  unlimited  competition  to  avoid  what  is  supposed  to  be 
worse — socialism,  that  business  was  done  to  a  considerable  extent 
in  those  earlier  days  and  that  it  can  be  done  again.  Among  some  of 
the  heirlooms  of  that  period,  not  so  long  ago  in  this  country,  we 
find  laws  that  sought  to  correct  business  abuses  by  imprisonment 
for  debt.  We  revived  the  spirit  of  those  corrective  laws  in  the 
Sherman  act,  but  we  now  seek  to  imprison  people  for  seeking  to 
keep  out  of  debt.  The  Sherman  act  and  the  spirit  which  prompts 
the  maintenance  of  such  laws  belong  to  that  period — the  period  of 
blood-letting  in  medicine. 

No  modern  country  has  ever  been  more  unfortunate  than  ours 
in  its'  laws  which  affect  the  prosperity  of  the  people  and  the  eco- 
nomic conditions  of  the  country.  Our  unscientific  banking  laws, 
prompted  largely  to  revenge  certain  practices  at  the  time  of  their 
adoption,  have  often  brought  the  prosperity  of  the  country  to  a  halt. 
The  depreciated  money  craze,  with  all  its  ignoble  history,  followed 
in  the  wake  of  that  bad  legislation,  and  if  we  are  to  make  the  at- 
tack on  the  business  of  the  country  a  political  status  now,  we  cer- 
tainly will  show  that  we  possess  a  genius  for  doing  the  wrong  thing 
in  our  over-production  of  legislation. 

The  protective  tariff,  which  has  been  the  main  issue  of  a  great 
political  party  for  half  a  century,  was  made  a  law  to  benefit  and 
foster  the  industries  of  the  country.  This  protective  tariff  was 
one  of  the  earliest  forms  of  conservation.  Whatever  evils  it  may 
have  developed,  it  originated  at  least  from  a  desire  to  foster  the 
business  of  the  country,  and  yet  those  who  favor  a  protective  tariff 
must  admit  that  we  checkmate  the  benefits  of  that  protection  with- 
out eliminating  the  evils  of  the  system  by  the  enforcement,  or 
threatened  enforcement  of  such  laws  as  the  Sherman  act.  We 


262         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

hear  much  today  about  the  conservation  of  our  resources.  It 
sounds  well,  and  we  like  high  sounding  terms  in  this  country,  but 
it  is  a  travesty  to  advocate  the  policy  of  conservation  and  at  the 
same  time  maintain  laws  that  keep  the  coal  mining  industry  of  the 
country  in  its  present  plight. 

The  statement  is  made  by  a  high  authority  that  aside  from  the 
loss  of  life,  the  injury  and  loss  sustained  by  the  country  from  the 
enforcement  of  the  Sherman  act,  and  its  threatened  enforcement, 
the  last  few  years  has  been  equal  to  that  sustained  by  the  country 
during  the  Civil  War.  Are  there  not  limits  to  be  placed  on  re- 
pressive laws  as  well  as  on  the  limits  of  corporate  greed  ? 

We  are,  above  everything  else,  an  industrial  country.  Our  in- 
dustries are  the  portend  of  the  United  States.  American  initiative, 
American  inventive  genius  and  our  vaunted  resources  have  made  us 
so,  but  the  victories  of  industry  in  the  world  today  are  won  only  on 
the  sovereign  field  of  reasonable  freedom — not  by  license  to  destroy 
competitors  nor  by  unlimited  competition.  Is  it  not  about  time  that 
this  country  should  consider  the  great  body  of  industry,  conducted 
in  the  main  properly,  as  well  as  to  consider  only  the  evils  found  in 
it?  What  is  the  natural  and  instinctive  conception,  unbiased  by 
prejudice,  politics  or  greed,  for  the  necessity  of  a  law  to  meet  the 
industrial  conditions?  It  certainly  is  not  the  Sherman  act  or  its 
present  status.  Converting  the  Department  of  Justice  into  a  Federal 
police  department  will  not  correct  and  at  the  same  time  build  up 
the  industries.  In  the  first  place  we  must  remember  that  concen- 
tration, which  is  one  form  of  conservation,  is  fundamental  to  indus- 
trial life  and  health.  From  some  of  our  past  failures  this  country 
should  profit  by  the  methods  adopted  in  other  commercial  and 
competing  countries,  where  they  promote  their  industries  for  the 
public  good,  and  at  the  same  time  prevent  coercion,  force  and  fraud. 
Germany  in  the  last  twenty-five  years  has  made  the  greatest  ad- 
vance in  industrial  development  ever  recorded  by  any  country.  It 
is  recognized  that  her  industrial  supremacy  is  the  result  of  definite 
and  deliberate  statesmanship  begun  shortly  before  the  passage  of 
our  Sherman  act.  Combinations  with  wholesome  restrictions  are 
not  only  permitted  but  are  encouraged  in  Germany.  Our  country, 
whether  it  will  or  not,  is  being  forced  into  foreign  markets  with  it  - 
manufactured  products.  Its  export  of  food  products  must  in  time 
decrease.  In  the  United  States  the  population  in  the  last  thirty 
years  has  increased  85%  and  its  foreign  trade  50%.  In  Germany 
during  the  same  thirty  years  the  population  has  increased  35%  and 
her  foreign  commerce  has  increased  250%.  Germany  is  an  importer 


SHERMAN  LAW  AND  THE  COAL  MINING  INDUSTRY.     263 

of  foodstuffs  and  raw  materials,  whereas  the  United  States  grows 
the  one  and  finds  the  other  at  hand.  And  unless  we  promptly  adopt 
in  this  country  a  well  settled  and  constructive  policy  looking  to  the 
maintenance  of  our  industries  we  will  seek  a  lower  level  in  the 
race  for  foreign  business.  From  an  impregnable  position  of  indus- 
trial supremacy  we  will  be  reduced  to  an  aggregate  of  industrial 
fragments  if  we  do  not  meet  the  situation  with  something  con- 
structive, as  well  as  corrective. 

Doctrine  Inherited  from  England. 

We  inherited  from  England  the  doctrine  of  restraint  of  trade. 
About  the  time  our  country  was  first  beginning  to  interpret  the 
Sherman  act,  England  met  and  passed  upon  similar  industrial  and 
trade  combinations.  While  following  the  same  common  law,,  the 
same  precedents  under  it  and- the  same  rules  of  construction,  Eng- 
land held  that  combinations  unattended  by  coercion  and  fraud  were 
a  benefit  to  the  public  and  entirely  lawful.  The  English  decisions 
are  illuminative  of  the  ''perpetual  quest  for  justice"  in  England, 
and  of  the  operation  of  its  law  as  a  servant  of  the  general  weal. 

Germany,  England  and  France  have  fostered  concentration  and 
industrial  co-operation.  They  have  found  no  evils  growing  out  of 
them  that  cannot  be  purged  without  resort  to  destructive  methods. 
Human  nature  certainly  is  no  worse  here  than  in  those  countries, 
and  yet  we  seek  to  repress  and  destroy  such  forms  of  industrial 
growth.  In  our  crude  legislative  and  administrative  efforts  we  tear 
down  where  we  should  build  up.  We  "make  a  solitude  and  call  it 
peace." 

Canada,  which  refused  our  reciprocity  agreement,  and  which 
believes  that  we  have  dissipated  our  resources,  has  recently  adopted 
a  constructive  policy  for  meeting  conditions  of  corporate  business. 
Our  country  and  Turkey  are  the  two  nations  of  the  world  that 
hold  fast  to  the  antiquated  doctrines  of  repression  and  destruction 
for  the  elimination  of  evils. 

In  this  and  all  other  commercial  countries  coercion  and  fraud 
are  condemned,  and  these  evils  are  prohibited  without  the  necessity 
of  the  enactment  and  enforcement  of  so-called  anti-trust  legisla- 
tion. A  homely  and  sensible  requirement,  to  make  every  dollar  of 
stock  represent  an  actual  dollar  of  money  or  property,  would  bene- 
fit the  country  in  a  much  higher  degree  than  any  drastic  piece  of 
anti-corporate  legislation.  As  long  as  the  actions  of  corporate  com- 
binations are  not  maintained  in  secrecy,  but  are  susceptible  to  public 
examination,  We  need  never  fear  a  recurrence  of  former  trust  evils. 


264         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

Publicity  in  corporate  conduct  in  any  country  is  what  sunlight  is  to 
sanitation.  In  the  countries  which  should  furnish  some  guidance 
in  these  great  questions,  it  is  publicity  in  some  form  that  is  the 
directing  force  in  the  maintenance  of  their  high  industrial  success. 

If  we  ever  do  enter  upon  a  full  return  to  unlimited  competi- 
tion, which  will  necessarily  be  fiercer  than  in  former  times,  no  one 
can  doubt  but  that  the  battle  will  be  to  the  strong  and  the  cunning, 
that  the  weaker  ones  will  go  down,  and  that  the  victors  will  develop 
strength  in  proportion  as  the  others  grow  weaker,  and  then  we  are 
back  where  we  started,  with  nothing  gained  and  much  lost  and 
wasted,  and  with  more  than  an  even  chance  of  a  recurrence  to  the 
vicious  forms  of  monopoly.  In  order  to  prevent  such  conditions 
it  is  not  necessary  to  have  business  men,  purely  as  business  men, 
run  the  government,  but  we  do  need  a  display  of  industrial  states- 
manship— statesmanship  that  has  an  eye  for  the  upbuilding  of  in- 
dustry on  proper  and  constructive  lines. 

This  country  has,  in  a  few  years,  not  only  developed  a  policy 
of  conservation,  but  a  militant  policy  of  conservation.  Conserva- 
tion means  not  only  the  preservation  of  the  forests  and  the  min- 
erals, but  it  means  the  protection  and  upbuilding  of  the  industries. 
Among  the  Falstaff  army  of  industries  in  this  country,  too  poor 
to  fight,  too  cowardly  or  too  virtuous  to  steal,  the  coal  mining  in- 
dustry presents  itself  as  one  of  the  most  bedraggled  members  of 
these  ragged  recruits.  The  coal  mining  industry,  as  it  exists  today, 
is  a  powerful  protest  against  the  fragmentary  methods  of  doing 
business  which  are  sought  to  be  impressed  on  the  country.  One  of 
the  engaging  consequences  is  that  the  consumers  of  fuel  will  in  a 
short  time  pay  in  heavy  excess  prices  for  the  present  dilapidated 
condition  of  that  industry.  And  it  is  strange,  indeed,  that  those 
who  apparently  seek  and  consider  the  welfare  of  the  people  are 
so  blind  to  obvious  conditions — conditions  which  of  necessity  must 
work  a  hardship  on  the  great  body  of  the  people.  If  it  wrere  not 
so  serious  it  would  be  one  of  the  ironies  of  our  combination  of 
politics  and  statesmanship  that  a  great  industry  is  put  to  it  not  only 
to  plead  for  a  living  existence  but  that  it  must  plead  for  the  pro- 
tection of  those  whom  it  serves  and  those  whom  it  employs.  In 
that  begging  attitude  it  stands  now,  and  has  stood  for  some  years, 
and  to  all  intents  and  purposes  its  appeals  have  been  to  deaf  ears. 
The  Truth  About  the  "Coal  Baron:' 

A  simple  and  striking  exaggeration  fixes  a  notion  among  people 
much  more  easily  than  a  full  and  accurate  truth.  The  moment  a 
newspaper  begins  to  talk  about  a  "Coal  Baron"  there  immediately 


SHERMAN  LAW  AND  THE  COAL  MINING  INDUSTRY.    265 

arises  in  the  minds  of  many  people  a  griffin  clawed  monster  of  un- 
told power  crushing  the  life  out  of  toiling  labor  in  the  bowels  of 
the  earth,  and  dragging  down  to  poverty  and  ruin  the  consumers 
of  coal.  Coal  barons  are  like  ghosts — no  one  ever  saw  one,  but  for 
that  reason  alone  ignorant  people  believe  in  them.  The  coal  opera- 
tors are  about  the  last  class  to  whom  such  a  term  should  apply,  for, 
if  there  is  any  one  that  is  between  the  upper  and  nether  millstone 
it  is  the  coal  operator. 

If  the  passage  or  construction  of  some  ugly  looking  piece  of 
legislation  under  which  somebody  or  everybody  could  be  prose- 
cuted, or  more  especially  threatened  with  prosecution,  would  change 
the  coal  mining  industry  for  the  better,  it  would  no  doubt  be  done 
with  promptness  and  dispatch.  No  one  values  more  highly  the 
uses  of  the  Mining  Bureau,  or  more  admires  its  Director,  Dr. 
Holmes,  in  his  awful  task  of  uplift  work,  than  I  do,  but  the  Min- 
ing Bureau,  so  far  as  it  concerns  the  needs  of  the  coal  mining 
industry  today,  is  like  a  raisin  in  a  loaf  of  bread.  We  are  told  that 
the  national  government  is  necessarily  limited  on  constitutional 
grounds  in  what  it  may  do  for  the  coal  mining  industry — that  the 
several  states  and  the  industry  itself  must  work  out  its  improve- 
ment. All  this  sounds  very  well,  bears  the  stamp  almost  of  judicial 
declaration,  and  there  is  only  one  objection  to  it,  and  that  is,  that 
it  is  not  true.  Let  us  look  at  these  governmental  obstacles.  The 
Mining  Bureau  and  the  Geological  Survey  have  investigated  the 
coal  mining  industry,  they  know  the  real  and  true  conditions,  they 
know  what  causes  the  tragedy  of  the  mines,  they  know  what  causes 
the  waste  and  dissipation  of  resources,  life  and  energy  in  mining 
operations,  they  know  what  will  prompt  exorbitant  prices  for  fuel 
in  the  near  future  and  they  know  what  is  reducing  the  available 
coal  resources  with  frightful  rapidity.  To  what  purpose  is  all  this 
put?  They  are  given  the  high  honor  of  submitting  these  reports 
with  their  recommendations  to  the  industry  and  to  the  public,  after 
which  they  are  duly  filed  in  Washington,  not  even  in  a  fireproof 
building,  and  are  soon  lost  to  sight  beneath  their  enveloped  dust. 
The  operators  would  willingly  follow  these  recommendations,  but 
they  must  conduct  their  industry  in  a  way  which  must  conform  to 
certain  laws,  and  these  laws,  such  as  the  Sherman  act,  negative  in 
effect  the  ability  to  carry  out  the  recommendations  of  the  govern- 
mental bureaus.  The  Mining  Bureau,  after  a  careful  examina- 
tion of  the  mining  industry  in  this  and  other  countries,  may  recom- 
mend that  the  industry  should  be  conducted  along  certain  lines  in 
order,  properly,  to  effect  the  conservation  of  resources,  the  health 


266         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

and  life  of  those  engaged  in  this  underground  toil  and  to  foster  and 
safeguard  the  industry  itself.  The  Department  of  Justice  will  say 
that  that  is  all  very  well,  but  even  though  that  is  the  only  proper 
way  to  conduct  the  industry  for  the  benefit  of  the  industry  and 
country,  you  will,  nevertheless,  be  prosecuted,  or  threatened  with 
prosecution,  if  you  attempt  to  adopt  these  methods.  Here,  indeed, 
is  a  Chinese  tyranny  which  is  hard  to  reconcile  with  our  funda- 
mental declarations. 

Not  only  that,  but  our  state  governments  are  helpless,  ren- 
dered so  by  the  blight  of  the  statutes  of  the  Federal  government. 
The  recent  report  of  the  Bureau  of  Mines  of  Pennsylvania  shows 
that  there  can  be  no  progress  in  conservation  of  coal  resources  and 
of  human  life  in  coal  mining,  until  there  is  a  readjustment  in  that 
industry  in  some  form  of  concentration,  until  laws  are  made  which 
permit  such  action. 

At  the  last  special  session  of  Congress  there  were  over  twenty- 
five  different  commissions  appointed  to  investigate  something  or 
somebody.  There  were  none  appointed  to  investigate  the  coal 
mining  industry.  This  industry  for  some  years  has  been  seeking  to 
have  itself  investigated,  and  invites  and  courts  investigation  now 
by  any  governmental  or  congressional  body.  No  commission  could 
recommend  anything  other  than  what  is  being  advocated  by  this 
Mining  Congress.  Over  80  per  cent  of  the  cost  of  mining  coal  is  in 
the  labor,  the  cost  of  that  labor  plus  the  cost  of  only  the  most 
essential  matters  in  connection  with  the  production  of  coal  is,  now 
greater  than  the  price  received  for  it.  A  concern  that  manufactures 
.a  toy — the  company  that  makes  kodaks — shows  by  its  report  that 
it  made  over  $8,000,000  last  year.  The  entire  coal  mining  industry 
from  the  Mississippi  to  the  Pocahontas  hills  in  Virginia  did  not 
make  eight  thousand  cents  during  that  time.  It  did  worse  than  that, 
it  lost  and  wasted  human  life  and  coal  resources,  to  say  nothing  of 
the  spent  energies  of  the  industry.  In  this  country  it  has  become 
almost  a  crime  to  say  that  any  industry  must  raise  the  price  of  its 
product,  but  a  higher  average  price  must  be  obtained  for  coal.  This 
does  not  mean  that  the  general  consumer  will  necessarily  pay  more, 
it  means  a  general  adjustment  of  prices  by  which  the  operator  will 
obtain  a  reasonable  profit. 

Selling  Coal  to  Canada  at  Loss. 

Canada,  when  repudiating  reciprocity  with  this  country,  crit- 
icized us  for  wasting  our  resources.  And  we  are  selling  and  shipping 
to  Canada  millions  of  tons  of  coal  a  year  at  an  actual  loss — deplet- 
ing our  own  coal  resources  and  paying  Canada  to  help  us  injure 


SHERMAN  LAW  AND  THE  COAL  MINING  INDUSTRY.    267 

ourselves,  all  of  which  operates  to  increase  the  price  to  American 
consumers  of  fuel.  Evidently  in  some  things  Canada  needed  no 
reciprocity.  In  a  proper  readjustment  of  the  industry  such  losses 
will  be  stopped,  and  in  a  concentration  of  coal  mining  operations 
in  the  different  fields  a  movement  toward  a  higher  level  will  be 
found. 

This  country  need  have  no  fear  of  a  monopoly  of  fuel  by  such 
a  movement  of  concentration.  It  is  much  more  likely  to  buy  its 
fuel  at  a  reasonable  price  in  the  future  by  having  the  industry  in 
this  form.  There  is  no  more  possibility  of  creating  a  monopoly  in 
that  industry  today  than  there  is  of  creating  a  monopoly  of  the 
elements.  The  necessities  of  the  country  and  the  industry  demand 
the  lessening  of  the  great  number  of  coal  mining  operations  scat- 
tered throughout  the  country.  In  the  present  condition  everything 
operates  to  increase  the  price  to  the  public  now,  and  to  largely 
increase  it  in  the  future.  It  has  been  demonstrated  that  a  multi- 
plicity of  mines  is  not  wholesome  from  any  standpoint;  it  causes 
bad  mining,  great  loss  of  resources  and  increases  the  cost  of  mining. 
If  coal  were  inexhaustible  it  might  be  a  matter  of  indifference  to 
the  country  how  the  industry  was  conducted,  but  as  that  is  not  the 
case,  and  as  the  readjustment  of  it  is  important  to  the  consumers 
of  coal  as  to  the  coal  operators,  it  becomes  a  matter  for  considera- 
tion and  action  on  the  part  of  both. 

One  of  the  troubles  of  the  industry  has  been  that  it  has  been 
insensible  to  hope  so  long  that  it  has  made  no  efforts  to  reorganize. 
Its  sole  virtue  has  been  that  of  endurance.  The  coal  operators  are 
usually  long  on  talk  and  short  on  work  when  it  comes  to  taking 
action  for  some  plan  for  reorganizing  the  industry  and  withdraw- 
ing it  from  the  fragmentary  methods  that  have  so  long  blighted  it. 
As  Bismarck  said,  it  is  not  more  resolutions,  more  discussions,  but 
what  we  need  is  some  iron  and  blood  in  our  veins.  Now,  everything 
in  connection  with  this  industry  demands  some  form  of  reorganiza- 
tion on  lines  of  concentration.  The  operators  should  not  only  ad- 
vocate it,  but  do  it,  and  the  government  should  co-operate  in  such 
a  movement  if  that  were  possible.  There  must  be  now  some  rela- 
tion between  the  cost  of  mining  coal  and  the  price  for  which  that 
coal  is  sold.  It  is  not  necessary  to  have  the  government  fix  prices, 
nor  is  it  necessary  to  throw  the  entire  coal  industry  of  the  country 
into  one  great  company. 

It  would  seem  now  that  a  reasonable  restriction  of  trade  and 
production  is  lawful.  And  in  meeting  that  status  of  the  law  a  con- 


268         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

centration  of  operation  in  every  district  should  be  undertaken  by 
the  operators. 

If  the  coal  mining  industry  would  actually  begin  such  a  move- 
ment, work  out  constructively  and  put  in  force  an  actual  merger 
of  this  kind,  not  only  a  great  step  forward  would  have  been  made, 
but  it  would  be  the  dawn  of  a  new  era  in  that  industry.  Some  action 
of  this  kind,  sooner  or  later,  must  be  taken,  the  industry  has  waited 
now  too  long  for  some  one  to  point  the  way  and  undertake  to  start 
a  movement  for  improved  conditions  and  a  higher  plane.  And  if 
the  operators  of  any  given  field  would  put  their  energy,  their 
money,  as  well  as  their  prayers,  into  such  an  effort,  I  believe  they 
would  receive  their  due  reward  and  the  approval  of  the  consumers 
of  the  country.  To  take  any  other  course  now  is  a  further  retreat 
into  the  gloom  of  industrial  despair. 

Government  and  Public  Warned. 

And  now  I  want  to  sound  a  solemn  warning  to  the  government 
and  to  the  public.  When  a  miner  has  to  tighten  his  belt  in  lieu 
of  something  to  eat  when  he  is  hungry,  and  a  coal  operator  has  to 
pledge  his  mules  to  raise  his  payroll,  this  talk  about  the  enforce- 
ment of  anti-trust  laws  and  of  jail  sentences  is  just  about  as 
effective  with  them  as  "tweedledeeing  on  melodious  catgut."  Such 
declarations  may  cause  those  who  control  and  dispense  great  liquid 
capital  to  retire  to  cover,  but  the  time  has  passed  for  that  to  impress 
the  desperate  coal  operator  and  miner  out  on  the  firing  line. 

Excepting  some  special  coals,  the  coal  mining  industry  has 
produced  its  coal  at  a  loss  for  the  last  several  years  in  a  wild  com- 
petitive struggle  or  competitive  debauch ;  it  has  for  the  last  few 
years  fulfilled  every  injunction  of  the  proponents  of  unlimited  com- 
petition, and  the  results  speak  for  themselves. 

The  present  wage  scale  is  high  if  a  miner  should  work  eight 
hours  a  day  300  days  in  the  year — double  the  reward  for  similar 
work  outside.  But  the  miner  cannot  work  more  than  half  time,  and 
his  year's  reward  is  meager.  To  the  fierce  competition  this  is  due. 
The  operator  keeps  50  per  cent  more  miners  than  are  necessary. 
The  operator  has  to  produce  a  maximum  tonnage  to  prevent  heavy 
losses ;  and  to  meet  this  condition  he  keeps  open  large  areas  of  un- 
derground workings,  filled  to  the  limit  with  miners;  and  only  that 
coal  is  hauled  out  which  can  be  cheaply  recovered.  In  the  last 
four  years  the  coal  operator  has  met  every  condition  the  country 
sought  to  put  on  him,  and  he  has  failed.  He  has  done  everything 
except  reduce  wages.  The  losses  from  operations  cannot  be  con- 


SHERMAN  LAW  AND  THE  COAL  MINING  INDUSTRY.    269 

tinued  longer  and  a  crisis  is  at  hand.  In  my  opinion  it  will  reach 
a  culmination  next  spring.  And  unless  something  between  now  and 
then  is  done  to  reorganize  the  industry,  there  is  only  one  thing  tha't 
the  operator  can  do  to  reduce  the  cost  line  below  the  present  sell- 
ing price,  and  that  is,  to  cut  wages.  This  is  the  last  possible  resort 
of  the  industry,  but  the  operator  to  maintain  his  solvency  must  and 
will  do  it. 

In  my  opinion,  next  spring,  at  the  period  of  wage  settlement 
with  the  miners  all  over  the  country,  there  will  begin  one  of  the 
worst  industrial  warfares  this  country  has  ever  witnessed.  Com- 
pared with  it  the  prostration  of  railroad  traffic  in  England  a  few 
months  ago  will  be  a  holiday  affair.  The  coal  mining  industry  will 
come  to  a  full  stop.  We  will  have  a  feast  of  competition.  The 
consumers  of  fuel  will  compete  with  each  other  for  coal  when  there 
is  no  coal  to  be  had.  The  miner  will  compete  with  the  operator, 
pitting  his  stomach  against  the  endurance  of  the  operator — an  en- 
durance of  despair.  Into  the  welter  of  this  turmoil  the  entire  coun- 
try will  be  brought.  All  this  can  be  prevented,  not  by  talk,  by  dis- 
cussions, by  resolutions,  but  by  prompt,  vigorous  and  constructive 
action.  And  if  it  does  come,  the  blame,  the  vengeful  blame  of  the 
people,  will  be  placed  where  it  belongs — on  the  government  and  on 
the  weakling  coal  operator,  for  the  blind  and  indifferent  course  of 
the  one  and  the  irresolution  and  weakness  of  the  other. 


Anti-Trust  Laws  in  Their  Relation  to  the  Coal  Industry. 


BY  GLENN  W.  TRAER, 
CHICAGO,  ILL. 


The  sale  and  distribution  of  coal  in  the  various  coal  producing 
states  is  in  part  subject  to  the  provisions  of  the  Federal  anti-trust 
statute,  commonly  known  as  the  Sherman  act,  and  in  part  to  the 
provisions  of  the  anti-trust  statutes  of  the  respective  states.  The 
Sherman  act  applies  to  sales  of  coal  for  shipment  into  other  states. 
The  state  laws  apply  to  sales  for  local  delivery  or  for  shipment  to 
points  within  the  respective  states.  The  mere  production  of  coal, 
as  distinguished  from  its  sale  and  shipment,  is  governed  by  state 
law  alone.  Discussion  of  the  federal  statute  alone  does  not  give 
one  a  clear  understanding  of  the  insurmountable  difficulties  which 
confront  bituminous  coal  operators  under  present  laws.  Because 
of  limited  time  and  my  greater  familiarity  with  the  law  and  facts 
in  the  state  of  Illinois,  I  shall  confine  myself  to  Illinois  references 
in  discussing  the  local  phases  of  the  subject. 

Let  us  set  out  briefly  but  clearly  those  provisions  of  the  Federal 
act  and  the  Illinois  act  which  are  pertinent  to  this  discussion.  These 
quotations  follow  the  exact  language  of  the  two  statutes  respective- 
ly, except  as  to  the  omission  of  words  and  expression  which  are 
superfluous  to  this  discussion.  Both  the  Federal  and  State  statute 
impose  harsh  penalties  for  violation  of  their  provisions. 

The  Sherman  act  provides : 

"S.  I.  Every  contract,  combination  *  *  *  *  or  conspiracy  in 
restraint  of  trade  or  commerce  among  the  several  states  or  with 
foreign  nations,  is  hereby  declared  to  be  illegal"  (and  such  con- 
tract, combination  or  conspiracy  is  declared  to  be  a  misdemeanor). 

"S.  2.  Every  person  who  shall  monopolize  or  attempt  to 
monopolize  or  combine  or  conspire  with  any  person  to  monopolize 
any  part  of  the  trade  or  commerce  among 'the  several  states,  or  with 
foreign  nations,  shall  be  deemed  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor  *  *  *  *." 

As  now  construed  by  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States, 
this  statutory  condemnation  of  monopoly  and  of  restraint  of  trade 
is  about  the  same  as  the  common  law  condemnation,  with  statutory 
penalties  added.  Statutory  law  comprises  all  laws  enacted  by  legis- 
latures or  by  congress.  The  common  law  comprises  the  rules  and 
principles,  not  incorporated  into  statutes,  adopted  and  established 
by  courts  in  their  decisions  upon  questions  not  covered  by  statutes. 


AXTI-TRUST    LAWS    AND    COAL    INDUSTRY  271 

The  system  of  law  of  the  several  states  comprise  the  common  law, 
but  the  federal  system  of  law  does  not.  The  common  law  merely 
made  void  as  between  the  parties  thereto,  contracts  unreasonably 
restraining  trade  or  tending  to  create  monopoly.  No  punishment 
was  provided  or  penalty  imposed.  The  substance  of  the  common 
law  relating  to  monopolies  and  restraint  of  trade  with  penalties 
added  therefore  was  enacted  into  the  Federal  law  by  the  statute 
we  call  the  Sherman  act. 

Stated  more  briefly  the  Sherman  act  prohibits — 

(a)  restraint  of  trade  with  other  states  or  foreign  nations,  by 
means  of  contract  or  combination,  and 

(b)  the  monopoly  of  or  attempt  to  monopolize    any    part    of 
trade  or  commerce  with  another  state  or  with  a  foreign  nation,  by 
any  person  or  combination  of  persons. 

These  prohibitions  regarding  monopoly  or  the  attempt  to  mon- 
opolize are  about  as  definite  as  is  practicable.  In  fact,  monopoly  will 
be  rarely  if  ever  literally  absolute  and  it  would  be  impractical  to  fix 
by  statute,  percentages  or  degrees  which  should  be  necessary  to  con- 
stitute unlawful  monopoly.  The  conduct  of  the  person  or  persons 
charged  with  the  alleged  offense  and  the  results  they  accomplish 
must  determine  their  guilt  or  innocence,  in  the  usual  course  of  the 
administration  of  justice.  Cases  which  arise  will  be  settled  in  the 
due  course  of  affairs  and  uncertainty  as  to  the  future  settlement 
of  specific  cases  not  yet  arisen  need  not  paralyze  or  discourage 
effective  organization  in  different  lines  of  business. 

"Restraint  of  Trade"  Indefinite. 

But  "restraint  of  trade"  is  a  far  less  definite  expression.  It 
may  be  held  to  condemn  many  things  not  at  all  of  the  character 
or  effect  believed  to  be  inevitable  under  practical  monopoly,  and 
because  of  which  monopoly  always  has  been  feared  and  con- 
demned. The  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States  has  held  that 
this  prohibition  must  be  construed  "in  the  light  of  reason."  If 
this  is  intended  to  mean  that  only  those  acts  in  restraint  of  trade 
are  to  be  condemned  which  are  of  the  same  character  as  the  acts 
feared  from  monopoly  and  therefore  injurious  to  the  public  as  a 
whole,  it  is  unfortunate  that  it  has  not  yet  been  so  stated  by  the 
courts  of  last  resort.  Indeed  if  that  is  what  is  intended  it  is  diffi- 
cult to  understand  why  the  Federal  statute  might  not  be  safely 
amended  to  that  effect. 

The  Illinois  anti-trust  act  provides : 

"If  any    *  *  *  *    individual    *  *  *  *    shall    *  *  *  *    become 


272         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

*  *  *  *    a  party  to  any   *  *  *  *    understanding   with    any   other 

*  *  *  *    individual,  to  regulate  or  fix  the  price   *  *  *  *    of  any 
commodity ;  or  shall  *  *  *  *  become  *  *  *  *  a  party  to  any  pool, 
agreement,  contract,  combination  or  federation,  to  fix  or  limit  the 

*  *  *  *   quantity  of  any   *  *  *  *   commodity  to  be   *  *  *  *   pro- 
duced or  mined    *  *  *  *    in  this  state,  such    *  *  *  *    individual 

*  *  *  *  shall  be  *  *  *  *  guilty  of  conspiracy  to  defraud  *  *  *  *." 

Before  the  enactment  of  the  anti-trust  statute  in  Illinois,  the 
general  prohibition  of  monopoly  and  restraint  of  trade  rested  alone 
upon  the  common  law  of  the  state.  But  the  common  law  left  some 
things  to  reason  in  its  application  to  alleged  facts  and  it  did  not  pro- 
vide accompanying  penalties  as  for  criminal  misconduct.  There- 
fore the  Illinois  statute  quoted  was  enacted  in  which  the  use  of 
general  terms  like  monopoly  and  restraint  in  trade  is  avoided  and 
the  practical  things  most  feared  in  and  most  likely  to  result  from 
a  monopoly,  namely,  fixing  prices  and  limiting  output,  are  desig^ 
nated  with  admirable  clearness  and  prohibited  under  harsh  penal- 
ties. 

Stated  more  briefly  the  Illinois  anti-trust  act  prohibits : 

(a)  any  form  of  understanding,  between  any  two  or    more 
persons,  to  fix  the  price  of  any  commodity. 

(b)  any  form  of  agreement,  between  any  two  or  more  per- 
sons, to  fix  or  limit  the  quantity  of  any  commodity  to  be  produced. 

With  this  review  of  the  law  in  mind  turn  now  to  a  statement 
of  facts  relating  to  the  coal  mining  industry  in  the  state  of  Illinois. 
Almost  three  years  ago  I  had  the  honor  of  addressing  the  American 
Mining  Congress  in  the  City  of  Pittsburgh,  and  in  the  course  of 
my  remarks  described  the  conditions  of  the  coal  mining  industry 
in  Illinois.  The  demoralized  and  economically  unhealthful  condi- 
tions then  described  still  exist  and  much  of  the  language  then  used 
still  fits  the  case. 

There  are  about  three  hundred  independent  coal  producing 
companies  in  the  state,  operating  more  than  four  hundred  rail-ship- 
ping mines.  A  tremendously  rapid  expansion  of  mining  capacity 
has  been  made  possible  by  the  extraordinary  cheapness  at  which  a 
body  of  coal  lands  could  be  purchased  from  owners  usually  re- 
taining the  surface  and  the  ease  with  which  transportation  facilities 
are  extended  in  a  prairie  state,  and  access  given  to  large,  but  de- 
ceptively alluring  because  already  overfilled  markets.  Public  neces- 
sity seems  to  require  that  there  shall  be  in  existence  at  all  times  suf- 
ficient mining  capacity  to  supply  the  requirements  of  the  winter 
months.  This  inevitably  means  a  large  surplus  capacity  in  the 


ANTI-TRUST    LAWS    AND    COAL    INDUSTRY  273 

spring  and  summer  months.  But  all  reason  has  been  exceeded  in 
that  respect.  The  aggregate  annual  capacity  of  Illinois  coal  mines 
is  so  much  in  excess  of  the  aggregate  annual  demand  for  Illinois 
coal  that  the  average  running  time  of  all  mines  does  not -now  exceed 
1 80  days  per  year.  The  natural  fluctuation  in  the  demand  for 
Illinois  coal  between  summer  and  winter  is  such  that  the  industry 
never  can  expect  to  work  full  time.  While  Illinois  coal  can  be 
stocked  a  considerable  length  of  time  it  cannot  be  mined  many 
months  in  advance,  and  held  for  use  in  the  winter  like  anthracite 
and  more  expensive  eastern  bituminous  coals,  because  it  contains 
a  higher  percentage  of  moisture  and  will  crumble  and  slack  sooner 
than  the  higher  priced  coals.  Consumers  of  Illinois  coal  aggra- 
vate, rather  than  help  to  overcome,  this  condition  by  refusing  to 
order  coal  as  far  as  might  be  in  advance  of  the  actual  need  for 
it.  It  must  be  produced  substantially  as  ordered  from  time  to  time, 
and  this  makes  production  or  demand  (and  demand  and  production 
mean  the  same  thing  in  this  connection)  much  less  during  the 
months  April  to  September  inclusive  than  during  the  other  months 
of  the  year.  This  condition  is  so  uniform  that  the  relative  per- 
centages of  production  during  the  busy  season  and  the  duller  season 
have  not  varied  materially  in  ten  years  except  when  temporarily 
affected  by  anticipation  of  a  strike  or  other  abnormal  business  con- 
ditions. 

For  several  years  the  margin  of  capacity  over  and  above  sum- 
mer requirements  has  been  greater  than  is  necessary  to  properly 
supply  a  normal  busy  season.  For  the  reasons  given  it  never  could 
be  hoped  reasonably  that  the  mines  should  average  full  running 
time  excluding  only  Sundays  and  holidays.  But  after  making  all 
due  allowances  it  is  fair  to  say  that  the  excessive  producing  capacity 
results  in  an  average  loss  of  sixty  days  per  annum  for  all  mines, 
compared  with  what  might  be  properly  expected  with  a  reasonable 
adjustment  of  the  number  of  mines  attempting  to  run,  to  the  num- 
ber actually  required  to  fully  and  promptly  supply  all  demands. 

Si.rty  Days.  Lost  Annually  by  70,000  Miners. 

There  are  more  than  70,000  miners  and  mine  laborers  at  the 
mines  in  Illinois,  working  on  the  average  sixty  days  per  year  less 
than  they  could  work  if  there  were  a  reasonable  adjustment  of  pro- 
ducing capacity.  This  is  equivalent  to  the  absolute  idleness  for  the 
entire  year  of  12,000  to  15,000  men.  This  is  an  enormous  economic 
waste.  Many  miners  are  held  in  the  industry  working  short  time, 
with  resultant  low  annual  earnings,  when  their  labor  might  be  use- 


274         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

fully  applied  in  other  industries  where  it  is  needed.  Many  less 
miners  could  produce  all  the  coal  required  and  enjoy  much  larger 
annual  earnings. 

The  excessive  number  of  mines  kept  open  for  operation  causes 
a  scarcity  of  miners,  makes  miners  much  harder  to  get,  more  diffi- 
cult to  deal  with,  and  makes  it  necessary  to  accept  the  services  of 
inferior  miners,  when,  if  fewer  miners  were  required,  operators 
could  choose  the  better  class,  which  the  miners  themselves  desire 
shall  be  done. 

The  very  low  average  number  of  days'  operation  causes  coal 
to  cost  much  more  than  it  would  if  fewer  mines  were  operated  a 
greater  number  of  days;  and  the  natural  endeavor  of  each  indi- 
vidual company  to  secure  a  greater  number  of  days'  operation  than 
the  average  depresses  the  selling  price  of  coal  to  cost  or  less,  in  an 
effort  to  avoid  an  almost  certain  greater  loss  by  voluntarily  accept- 
ing a  lesser  one. 

The  intense  economy  forced  upon  the  mine  owners  by  these 
conditions  is  seriously  affecting  the  proper  conservation  of  the  coal 
deposits. 

The  general  population  of  the  communities  in  which  coal  mines 
are  located  as  a  rule  are  suffering  greatly  in  their  business  affairs. 
These  conditions  are  suffered  by  every  one  dependent  upon  the  in- 
dustry, while  the  consumers  of  Illinois  coal  as  a  general  rule  are 
buying  the  coal  at  the  cheapest  prices  in  the  world.  The  average 
price  at  the  mines  for  bituminous  coal  used  in  Chicago  and  St. 
Louis  is  cheaper  than  in  any  other  of  the  great  cities  of  this  coun- 
try. The  prices  paid  for  Illinois  coal  by  transportation  companies 
and  industries  is  less  than  half  the  price  paid  for  coal  for  similar 
uses  in  Great  Britain  and  on  the  continent  of  Europe.  I  am  in- 
formed by  coal  operators  in  other  states  that  similar  conditions  pre- 
vail with  them. 

Such  conditions  in  a  great  industry  are  a  public  evil,  not  a 
public  benefit  even  though  they  result  in  lower  prices  to  consumers 
than  would  prevail  under  an  intelligent  organization  of  the  industry. 

It  would  be  perfectly  justifiable  morally,  to  shut  down  the  sur- 
plus mines  during  the  spring  and  summer,  provided  enough  mines 
were  kept  open  to  adequately  supply  the  public  requirements  during 
that  period.  But  in  such  a  disorganized  industry,  selfishness  pre- 
vails apparently  without  thought  of  or  regard  for  the  future.  Human 
nature  would  act  the  same  in  any  other  industry,  under  like  con- 
ditions. Immediate  self  preservation  is  the  natural  instinct;  not 
present  self  sacrifice  for  the  chance  of  possible  future  benefit. 


ANTI-TRUST    LAWS    AND    COAL    INDUSTRY  275 

It  is  not  necessary  to  ask  that  competition  shall  be  eliminated 
or  even  vitally  impaired.  But  the  attitude  toward  competition  need 
not  be  that  of  fetish  worship.  It  is  a  subject  about  which  the  public 
can  safely  exercise  some  sense  of  justice  as  between  buyer  and 
seller,  and  should  do  so  in  its  own  best  interest.  A  seller  in  decid- 
ing whether  to  deal  with  any  given  buyer  should  have  at  least  some 
reasonable  equality  of  alternative  advantage  or  disadvantage.  But 
the  producer  of  coal  under  the  conditions  I  have  described  has  no 
equality  of  choice.  Practically  he  is  under  duress  as  compared 
with  the  buyer.  If  a  coal  mine  stands  idle,  physical  deterioration 
proceeds  with  great  rapidity.  In  many  cases  large  quantities  of 
water  must  be  pumped  out  constantly  or  the  mine  will  be  flooded 
and  destroyed,  while  in  others  underground  fires  from  spontaneous 
combustion  must  be  guarded  against  constantly.  A  very  heavy  ad- 
ditional penalty  is  thus  imposed  upon  the  mine  owner  -who  might 
otherwise  choose  to  let  his  mine  remain  idle  instead  of  producing 
and  selling  coal  at  a  direct  loss.  A  merchant  or  a  manufacturer  is 
not  put  to  the  choice  of  selling  at  a  loss  or  being  put  to  ruinous 
expense  to  avoid  having  his  store  or  factory  flooded  or  burned,  nor 
is  the  deterioration  of  an  idle  building  or  machinery  comparable  in 
any  degree  with  that  of  an  idle  mine. 

Buyer  and  Seller  in  Different  Positions. 

The  buyer  is  in  an  entirely  different  position  than  the  seller. 
Presumably  any  two  buyers,  or  any  number  in  fact,  may  legally 
combine  to  place  their  purchases  with  this  or  that  seller  at  their 
pleasure.  No  doubt  it  is  true  that  such  a  combination  of  buyers,  by 
misrepresentation  of  facts  or  other  acts  of  a  fraudulent  nature, 
might  be  held  punishable  for  conspiracy  to  defraud.  But  in  such 
case  the  legal  offense  would  consist  solely  of  the  misrepresentation 
or  the  fraudulent  acts.  The  mere  combination  to  purchase  jointly 
is  not  condemned  either  by  common  law  or  statute. 

The  theory  upon  which  the  condemnation  of  monopoly  is  based 
is  that  it  creates  a  false  relation  of  inequality  between  buyer  and 
seller,  gives  the  seller  an  unfair  advantage  and  enables  him  to 
secure  from  the  buyer  an  unfair  price;  a  price  greater  than  is 
necessary  to  yield  a  fair  and  reasonable  profit,  and  greater  than 
could  be  secured  if  the  relations  were  fair  and  equal. 

The  theory  upon  which  the  condemnation  of  restraint  of  trade 
is  based  is  that  such  restraint  is  injurious  to  the  public.  But,  does 
the  public  consist  solely  of  buyers  and  consumers? 

Perhaps  it  is  the  idea  of  consumers  and  their  champions,  that 
producers  are  merely  their  workmen  and  servants.  Even  -so,  are 


276         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

not  the  workmen  and  servants  entitled  to  protect  themselves  against 
unfair  advantages  claimed  by  their  employers  or  masters?  Public 
opinion  apprcves  proper  organization  with  proper  methods  on  the 
part  of  laboring  men  solely  for  the  reason  that  that  right  is  neces- 
sary to  enable  them  as  sellers  of  labor,  to  protect  themselves  against 
unfair  advantages  on  the  part  of  organized  capital,  the  buyers  of 
labor. 

Public  Will  Recognise  Obligation. 

It  is  my,, belief  that  when  the  public  becomes  correctly  informed 
as  to  the  destructive  effects  of  the  present  idol  worship  of  compe- 
tition without  regard  to  its  fairness  or  unfairness ;  and  the  waste 
which  might  be  lessened  without  injury  to  the  interests  of  the  public 
in  other  directions,  public  opinion  will  recognize  not  only  the  obliga- 
tion to  do.  justice,  but  the  self  injury  in  neglecting  or  refusing  to 
treat  this  great  problem  with  reference  to  the  interests  of  all  par- 
ties concerned.  Doubtless  there  are  those  who  will  answer  that  if 
producers  know  no  better  than  to  waste  their  capital,  efforts  and 
time  in  mutually  destructive  competition,  nevertheless  the  public 
generally  profits  rather  than  suffers  by  their  conduct ;  and  that  it 
is  no  part  of  the  public  duty  or  interest  to  conserve  the  property 
and  interests  of  people  who  lack  sufficient  judgment  and  self  con- 
trol to  do  so  for  themselves.  I  do  not  believe  that  such  a  position 
is  economically  sound,  or  creditable  to  the  individual  who  assumes 
it,  with  reference  to  any  kind  of  industry  or  public  service.  But 
in  connection  with  the  production  of  coal  it  is  particularly  unsound. 
Industries  engaged  in  production  or  manufacturing  based  upon  raw 
materials  which  are  reproduced  periodically  stands  on  a  different 
footing  than  those  engaged  in  the  production  of  coal.  It  is  true 
that  in  the  ordinary  manufacturing  industry,  a  large  excess  of  pro- 
ducing capacity  causes  serious  waste  and  loss,  because  of  capital 
tied  up  and  made  unproductive,  and  the  time  lost  by  laboring  men 
held  in  the  industry  and  working  only  part  time,  and  the  waste  of 
such  labor  and  other  expense  as  is  required  to  maintain  or  preserve 
idle  plants.  These  conditions  of  waste  and  loss  exist  in  even  a 
greater  degree  and  are  less  reparable  in  coal  mining  than  in 
ordinary  industries ;  and  there  is  also  the  irreparable  waste  of  an 
exhaustible  and  irreplaceable  natural  resource,  which  is  indispen- 
sable to  the  continued  existence  of  modern  industry  and  civiliza- 
tion. It  has  been  the  habit  of  cheerful  and  offhand  optimists  to 
assume  that  by  the  time  coal  is  exhausted  we  shall  have  discovered 
means  of  developing  power  from  the  ocean  tides,  the  sun  rays  and 
the  winds,  or  by  some  miraculous  manifestation  of  Providence  yet 


AXTI-TRUST    LAWS    AND    COAL    INDUSTRY  277 

to  be  revealed.  This  fallacy  has  been  disposed  of  by  the  recent 
report  of  a  British  Parliamentary  Commission  upon  available 
sources  of  power  to  take  the  place  of  coal.  The  report  of  this 
Commission  shows  the  vital  necessity  of  the  most  thorough  con- 
servation, both  in  the  use  of  coal  and  in  mining  it. 

But,  it  may  be  asked,  how  can  you  prevent  the  excessive  in- 
vestment of  capital  in  a  given  industry  during  or  following  a  period 
of  unusual  prosperity  in  that  industry  and  thereby  prevent,  the 
waste  consequent  upon  such  overcapacity ;  and  it  must  be  answered 
that  it  cannot  be  entirely  prevented.  But  it  may  be  greatly  modi- 
fied by  a  reasonable  regulation  of  production.  To  illustrate:  A 
period  of  extreme  depression  like  the  present  causes  the  permanent 
abandonment  of  old  mines  and  a  greater  loss  of  aggregate  capacity 
than  is  replaced  by  new  mines,  of  which  there  are  few  if  any 
opened.  The  history  of  the  industry  discloses  that  when  prosperity 
returns  demand  for  coal  increases  with  far  greater  rapidity  than 
producing  capacity  can  be  increased,  because  it  requires  from  one 
to  two  or  three  years  according  to  location  and  natural  conditions, 
to  open  and  develop  a  new  mine.  The  rapidly  growing  demand 
soon  overtakes  the  weakened  capacity.  Consumers  bid  prices  up 
on  themselves  and  the  industry  is  quickly  in  a  state  of  abnormal 
and  excited  prosperity.  Inexperienced  and  deluded  owners  or  bor- 
rowers of  capital  rush  into  the  industry.  The  judgment  and  fore- 
sight of  experinced  men  frequently  is  overborne  by  the  lure  and 
excitement.  In  a  few  years  the  increasing  demand  slows  down  and 
later  even  shrinks  again.  In  the  meantime  the  abnormal  increase 
of  capacity  overtakes  and  passes  demand  and  the  periodical  col- 
lapse and  depression  again  sets  in.  It  is  a  superficial  comment  and 
merely  begs  the  question  to  say  that  this  occurs  in  all  industries 
and  cannot  be  avoided  without  changing  human  nature.  Moreover 
in  the  production  of  coal  it  occurs  with  much  greater  than  the 
average  intensity  and  as  I  have  endeavored  to  point  out,  results  in 
greater  harm  to  the  public  welfare.  The  real  question  involved  is 
whether  an  attempted  cure  may  not  aggravate  the  disorder  or  work 
harm  to  the  public  in  other  directions.  It  will  be  urged  that  arti- 
ficial maintenance  of  prices  against  natural  reaction  from  unnatur- 
ally high  levels,  will  only  delay  the  reaction  temporarily  and  inten- 
sify it  when  it  occurs.  Again  this  is  merely  begging  the  question. 
The  solution  which  should  be  sought  for  should  be  one  which,  by 
checking  the  unnatural  severity  of  the  depression,  will  to  the  same 
extent  check  the  abnormal  reaction  following  recovery.  An  intelli- 
gent regulation  of  attempted  production  during  periods  of  depres- 


278         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

sion  and  excess  of  capacity  would  tend  to  lessen  the  actual  loss  of 
producing  power  and  by  a  greater  readiness  to  meet  and  supply  a 
rapidly  increasing  demand  following  recovery  from  depression, 
would  in  turn  prevent  an  excessive  increase  of  capacity.  But  such 
a  policy  cannot  be  carried  out  by  co-operation  among  mine  owners 
under  present  laws  as  now  interpreted  by  the  courts  with  any 
reasonable  certainty  of  escaping  prosecution,  even  though  reason- 
ably disinterested  persons  could  see  in  the  results  effected  no  prac- 
tical harm  to  the  public  interests  in  general,  but  on  the  contrary 
material  incidental  benefits.  President  Taft  doubtless  has  taken  a 
sound  position  in  defying  radicals  and  demagogues  to  give  an  illus- 
tration of  a  case  where  an  actually  guilty  person  or  corporation 
could  escape  punishment  under  the  federal  law  as  now  construed. 
But  so  far  as  I  am  aware  he  has  omitted  to  assert  with  equal  con- 
fidence and  positiveness  or  at  all  that  a  person  or  corporation,  per- 
haps guilty  of  technical  violation  of  the  law,  but  practically  inno- 
cent of  any  public  harm,  could  be  equally  certain  of  escaping  pun- 
ishment. 

I  do  not  think  it  can  be  reasonably  expected  that  either  state 
or  Federal  law  shall  be  so  framed  as  to  state  specifically  what  man- 
ner of  contract,  combination  or  conduct  in  every  case  shall  con- 
stitute unlawful  restraint  of  trade.  Perhaps  no  more  accurate 
statutory  test  can  be  devised  than  that  the  purpose  or  the  necessary 
results  shall  be  harmful  to  the  public  interest  or  shall  give  either 
buyer  or  seller  an  undue  and  unfair  advantage.  It  will  be  found  in 
applying  such  test  or  any  other  test  it  is  practical  to  devise  that  it 
involves  the  determination  of  mixed  questions  of  fact  and  law. 
Unless  otherwise  provided  in  the  statute,  such  determination  would 
be  made  in  the  courts  in  the  usual  manner.  If  the  laws  were 
amended  to  the  effect  just  suggested  but  no  further,  there  would 
still  be  many  cases  involving  perfect  good  faith  on  the  part  of  busi- 
ness men,  but  in  which  the  parties  could  have  the  legality  of  their 
plan  determined  only  by  submitting  to  criminal  prosecution,  or  by 
being  put  to  the  necessity  of  suing  some  purchaser  who  might 
refuse  to  pay  under  the  forfeiture  provisions  of  the  laws,  at  the  risk 
of  confiscation  of  the  entire  amount  involved.  Such  methods  and 
conditions  in  the  enforcement  of  law  are  not  essential  to  the  proper 
punishment  of  persons  guilty  of  intentional  and  harmful  restraint 
of  trade  and  they  will  not  continue  to  be  acceptable  to  the  majority 
of  citizens  very  long.  Indeed  it  is  a  fair  question  whether  the 
majority  of  the  people  will  not  demand  a  different  system  at  once 
when  the  real  nature  and  effect  of  these  things  become  a  little  clearer 
to  them. 


AXTI-TRUST    LAWS    AND    COAL    INDUSTRY  279 

No  unanswerable  reason  has  been  advanced  why  a  modified 
form  of  the  commission  method  as  applied  to  the  control  of  rail- 
road rates  and  practices  might  not  be  applied  to  the  control  of  con- 
tracts and  combinations  in  restraint  of  or  tending  to  restrain  trade. 

I  will  not  attempt  to  go  into  details  further  than  to  say  that 
this  suggestion  does  not  involve  the  idea  that  a  commission  should 
have  power  to  fix  or  control  prices  of  commodities.  There  are 
certain  constitutional  questions  involved  which  would  require  care- 
ful consideration  in  framing  a  trade  commission  law,  but  they  are 
not  such  as  to  prevent  a  vast  improvement  in  the  justice  of  the 
present  rules  and  methods  for  determining  the  legality  or  criminali- 
ty of  plans  conceived  in  good  faith. 

Could  Submit  Contracts  to  Courts. 

It  is  true  that  the  laws  might  be  so  drafted  that  the  contracts 
or  combinations  could  be  submitted  to  the  courts,  before  putting 
them  into  force.  But  this  would  result  in  differing  rulings  in  the 
various  districts  or  circuits  of-  the  same  state  or  of  the  United 
States,  on  contracts  of  exactly  the  same  form  and  purpose;  and 
would  vastly  increase  the  number  of  appeals  to  the  supreme  courts. 
It  is  to  avoid  this  confusion  and  multiplicity  of  litigation  that  the 
Interstate  Commerce  Commission  and  the  state  railroad  com- 
missions are  given  the  sole  initiative  or  original  jurisdiction  in  all 
cases  regarding  railroad  rates  and  practices.  The  same  reason  exists 
and  probably  in  a  greater  degree  for  submitting  trade  contracts  or 
combinations  to  a  trade  commission  for  each  state  or  for  the 
United  States,  rather  than  to  the  various  district  or  circuit  courts. 
Contracts  or  combinations  affecting  competition  of  trade  should  be 
punishable  criminally  only  in  case  of  their  being  put  into  practice 
before  being  submited  to  the  trade  commission,  or  being  persisted 
in  after  condemnation  by  the  commission  or  the  higher  courts. 
Approval  by  the  commission  should  give  prima  facie  legality, 
and  should  protect  the  parties  operating  under  them,  unless  and 
until  the  ruling  of  the  commission  should  be  reversed  by  the 
higher  courts. 

Even  if  public  opinion  is  not  yet  ready  to  place  all  branches 
of  trade  and  industry  upon  this  basis,  its  greater  self  interest  in 
the  avoidance  of  avoidable  waste  of  the  coal  reserves  of  the  nation 
should  justify  the  change  with  reference  to  the  production  of  coal. 

Under  such  form  of  law  it  should  be  possible  to  place  the  pro- 
duction of  coal  upon  a  higher  plane  of  conservation  of  the  coal 
itself,  of  the  capital  invested  and  the  labor  applied  in  mining,  with- 
but  injury  in  other  forms  to  the  interests  of  the  public. 


Anti-Trust  Laws  in  Their  Relation  to  the  Mining  Industry. 


BY  WALTER  WILLIAMS, 
BENTON,    ILLINOIS. 


In  the  preparation  of  the  program,  I  received  a  communication 
from  the  secretary  that  I  would  be  expected  to  discuss  this  general 
question  of  the  Sherman  anti-trust  law  as  it  applies  to  the  coal 
mining  industry  in  Illinois  and  the  country.  I  understood  I  was  to 
discuss  this  question  tomorrow  night,  and  it  was  by  mere  chance  that 
I  came  in  to  the  meeting  this  evening.  I  am  not  here  with  the  ex- 
pectation that  I  can  add  more  than  commendation  to  the  excellent 
papers"  that  have  just  been  read.  These  papers  have  been  written 
by  men  who  know  the  ills  that  beset  the  industry.  That  is  evident 
from  the  exhaustive  manner  in  which  they  have  treated  the  sub- 
ject, from  the  clearness  with  which  they  have  arrived  at  conclusions, 
from  the  far-sighted  suggestions  given  as  to  the  results  that  would 
follow  a  continuation  of  the  present  policy,  and  from  some  reme- 
dies suggested  to  alleviate  our  distress. 

The  conditions  that  have  brought  about  our  present  state  in 
the  mining  industry  are  merely  the  result  of  the  old  struggle  be- 
tween the  vested  rights  of  property  and  the  rights  of  men.  We  are 
only  reaping  the  whirlwind  that  has  been  sown.  The  tremendous 
opportunities  for  industrial  development  in  this  country  following, 
as  one  of  the  speakers  said,  the  Civil  war ;  following  the  discovery 
of  the  wonderful  natural  resources  of  this  country  and  the  desire 
to  develop  it,  placed  in  the  hands  of  a  few  men,  a  few  combinations 
of  men,  power  such  as  has  never  been  seen  in  the  civilized  world 
before.  It  has  caused  the  creation  of  great  corporations,  such  as 
the  Standard  Oil  Company  and  the  great  railroad  systems  of  this 
country,  and  they  have  abused  the  privileges  that  were  theirs,  as 
men  and  corporations  without  wise  restraint  are  prone  to  do.  They 
are  not  to  be  blamed  too  harshly.  The  law  permitted  it,  and  the 
people  themselves  are  to  blame  because  they  made  the  law,  or  per- 
mitted it  to  be  made,  allowing  the  condition  that  confronts  us  today 
and  which  we  cry  out  against. 

This  assault  upon  capital,  this  assault  upon  the  railroads,  this 
assault  upon  corporations,  is  the  natural  result  of  the  excesses  com- 
mitted by  the  great  combinations  in  this  country.  The  Sherman 
anti-trust  law  was  a  blind  effort  on  the  part  of  the  great  masses 
who  felt  the  repression,  who  felt  the  effort  of  these  gigantic  cor- 


AXTI-TRUST    LAWS    AXD    COAL    INDUSTRY  281 

porations  to  get  control  of  the  transportation  of  the  country,  the 
necessaries  of  life  and  the  sources  of  supply ;  and,  realizing  that 
danger  threatened  and  panic  stricken  by  its  imminence  and  unknown 
possibilities  for  working  harm,  the  Sherman  Anti-Trust  law  came 
as  the  result;  it  was  a  blow  struck  into  the  dark,  a  blind  effort  on 
their  part  to  break  down  this  approaching  evil,  and,  naturally,  such 
blind  effort  was  not  constructive  in  its  nature — as  one  of  the  speak- 
ers said,  it  was  repressive. 

The  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States,  in  my  judgment,  could 
construe  the  law  in  no  other  way.  The  function  of  the  supreme 
court  is  not  constructive,  but  interpretative.  This  law  is  on  the 
statute  books,  and  it  is  theirs  to  interpret,  and  for  the  executives  of 
this  country  to  enforce ;  and  neither  the  supreme  court  nor  the 
President  are  to  blame.  They  could  do  nothing  under  the  circum- 
stances other  than  just  what  they  have  done.  Mr.  Taft  and  Mr. 
Wickersharri  are  merely  following  out  their  plain  duty,  under  the 
law  as  it  is,  when  they  say  that  these  gigantic  corporations  must  be 
dissolved. 

Now,  what  must  be  done  ?  They  are  doing  their  duty,  but  it  is 
not  going  to  relieve  the  repressive  situation  in  this  country.  It  is 
not  going  to  relieve  the  fearful  condition  that  the  coal  business  of 
this  country  presents.  The  constructive  part  must  be  done  by  the 
legislatures  of  this  country,  and  now  that  the  Sherman  anti-trust 
law  has  been  interpreted,  and  now  that  effort  is  being  made  to  en- 
force it,  the  people  are  becoming  aroused  to  the  futility  of  the 
enforcement  of  that  law  and  the  tremendous  loss  that  is  going  to 
come  if  it  is  enforced.  Combinations  in  this  country  are  inevitable. 
All  we  need,  or  rather  the  thing  we  need,  is  not  to  do  away  with 
combinations,  but  to  do  away  with  the  unreasonable  oppression 
which  combinations  give  an  opportunity  to  put  into  effect.  Com- 
binations must  be  permitted,  because  only  by  combination  of  capital 
can  business  be  economically  handled.  No  one  man,  for  instance,  has 
the  money  to  build  up  an  institution  like  the  Standard  Oil  Com- 
pany, which  has  reduced  a  common  household  necessity  from  an 
exorbitant  price  to  a  price  that  brings  it  within  reach  of  the  humblest 
citizen.  We  must  permit  combination.  It  is  the  inevitable  method 
of  this  age.  The  thing  we  ought  to  do  is  to  permit  the  combinations 
and  place  such  restrictions  upon  them  that  the  former  opportunity 
for  exploitation,  for  plundering  the  public,  can  not  exist. 

The  ordinary  legislature  in  any  state  in  this  Union,  and  even 
the  Congress  of  the  United  States,  as  it  is  organized  today,  and  as 
its  members  are  elected,  can  not  handle  this  question  as  it  should 


282        PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

be  handled.  It  is  futile  to  expect  a  Congress  that  is  made  up  of  a 
changing  body  of  men,  changing  every  two  years,  to  investigate  the 
industrial  conditions  of  this  country  and  construct  laws  that  are 
going  to  meet  the  needs  of  this  country.  There  are  twenty-five 
congressional  districts  in  the  state  of  Illinois,  and  there  is  a  differ- 
ent congressman  sent  from  many  of  those  districts  every  time  there 
is  an  election,  which  is  every  two  years.  What  does  the  ordinary 
congressman  know  about  legislation  his  first  term?  What  does  he 
know  about  constructive  statesmanship?  What,  if  he  does  know 
it,  can  he  accomplish  in  that  time?  I  am  inclined  to  believe  that 
the  suggestion  of  the  first  speaker  will  be  the  logical  one.  We  must 
resort  to  some  form  of  commission,  a  scientific  commission,  a  com- 
mission that  will  be  appointed  or  constituted  to  exist  over  a  term 
of  years,  whose  members  shall  go  into  these  questions  and  study 
them  thoroughly,  study  them  from  a  scientific  standpoint  that  shall 
be  based  upon  knowledge  as  to  what  is  right  between  all  the  parties 
interested. 

Now,  you  men  who  are  in  the  coal  business  are  clamoring  for 
an  amendment  to  the  anti-trust  law  that  will  permit  you  to  com- 
bine, and  there  you  stop.  You  must  expect  to  not  only  be  permitted 
to  combine,  but  to  be  restrained  from  plundering  the  great  body  of 
the  people  by  the  use  of  a  too  strong  combination  or  a  too  merce- 
nary one.  I  am  a  coal  operator  myself  and  I  see  the  necessity  for 
combination;  but,  gentlemen,  we  must  take  with  it  the  inevitable 
consequence  that  will  follow — the  having  restrictions  thrown  around 
us  so  that  we  can  not  at  certain  seasons  of  the  year,  or  at  any 
time,  exact  an  exorbitant  tribute. 

Why  have  we  not  acted?  A  large  measure  of  blame  was  put 
on  us  as  well  as  the  government,  by  the  last  speaker,  and  one  reason 
why  we  have  not  acted  after  we  realized  the  condition,  is  because 
we  are  born  gamblers.  There  is  not  a  man  in  the  coal  business  to- 
day, bad  as  the  condition  is,  but  hopes  that  the  recurrence  of  that 
high  tide  of  prosperity  that  occasionally  comes  to  the  industry  will 
arrive  before  he  is  forced  into  bankruptcy  and  out  of  business.  We 
are  satisfied  in  the  summer  time  to  trade  a  dollar  for  ninety  cents,  in 
the  hope  that  when  September  and  the  winter  months  come  we  may 
trade  the  dollar  for  $1.75  or  $2.00.  Our  business  will  have  to  be 
put  on  a  basis  of  reasonableness,  which  shall  give  a  return  on  the 
investment  that  shall  be  both  just  and  permanent.  With  the  desire 
for  combination  must. come  also  the  recognition  that  there  must  be 
restriction  of  an  unlimited  profit.  That  has  come  to  the  railroads. 
The  Interstate  Commerce  Commission  has  fixed  certain  maximum 


ANTI-TRUST    LAWS    AND    COAL    INDUSTRY  283 

prices  that  the  railroads  may  charge  for  the  service  they  render.  It 
would  not  be  a  bad  thing  for  the  coal  industry,  and  I  offer  it  as  a 
suggestion.  Suppose  we  had  a  commission  that  would  fix  the  max- 
imum price  that  we  might  charge  for  our  product,  that  price  being 
fixed  after  an  intelligent  study  of  the  business  as  it  affects  all  the 
parties  in  interest — the  operator,  the  workman,  and  the  public,  and 
fix  it  so  that  there  would  be  a  reasonable  and  even  large  profit,  be- 
cause the  hazards  of  the  coal  business  demand  that  the  profits  shall 
be  more  than  come  to  the  ordinary  business.  Then  permit  combina- 
tions whereby  the  maximum  price  that  the  commission  fixes  shall 
be  the  minimum  price  that  the  operators  will  charge  to  the  public. 

The  commission  idea  is  the  one  that  is  going  to  make  itself  felt 
in  every  line  of  endeavor.  I  am  a  democrat  in  politics,  but  I^am 
heartily  in  favor  of  Mr.  Taft's  idea  (though  favoring  Taft's  ideas 
about  anything  may  run  counter  to  the  political  theory  of  many  of 
those  belonging  to  my  party),  and  I  can  see  a  certain  Tightness  in 
the  attitude  that  he  has  assumed  with  regard  to  the  revision  of  the 
tariff.  We  must  get  away  from  the  idea  that  all  of  these  things  are 
to  be  fixed  by  politicians  who  have  selfish  interests  to  subserve. 
These  laws  must  be  constructive  in  their  nature,  and  they  can  only 
be  constructive  in  their  nature  after  thorough  investigation  of  the 
particular  subject  by  a  body  of  men  who  are  both  honest  and  ef- 
ficient. The  legislature  of  Illinois  is  as  wholly  incompetent  to  deal 
with  this  question,  as  it  is  at  present  constituted,  as  is  a  new  born 
babe.  Its  shame  is  written  broadcast  all  over  the  country,  and  how 
can  you  expect  a  body  of  men,  such  as  they,  to  deal  with  a  ques- 
tion that  is  fundamental  in  its  nature,  and  that  affects  a  great  in- 
dustry and  the  interests  of  enormous  capital  and  a  great  body  of 
workmen ;  over  fifty  thousand  men  working  in  the  mines  in  the 
state  of  Illinois  and  millions  of  capital  invested,  and  a  great  popu- 
lation dependent  upon  the  industry  for  their  fuel,  and  other  great 
industries  dependent  upon  it  for  the  power  to  turn  their  wheels.  To 
submit  this  question  to  a  body  of  men  so  elected — this  year  in,  next 
year  out — and  so  likely  to  be  both  ignorant  of  the  questions  and 
unmindful  of  their  duty,  would  be  disastrous.  It  must  be  sub- 
mitted to  a  body  of  men  who  can  and  will  investigate  it  fully,  and 
who  will  bring  in  a  report  that  shall  provide  the  basis  for  construct- 
ive legislation;  a  body  of  men  who  will  have  in  mind  the  right  of 
capital  to  a  reasonable  profit  upon  their  investment  and  also  the 
right  of  labor  to  a  reasonable  return  for  their  industry,  securing  to 
them  not  only  their  daily  bread,  but  an  opportunity  to  lift  their  eyes 
from  the  ground  occasionally  and  get  a  glimpse  of  a  broader  oppor- 


284         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

tunity — an  opportunity  for  education  and  some  of  the  cultural 
things  of  life.  We  must  face  the  changing  condition  of  sentiment 
in  this  country,  and  that  means  fair  play,  not  alone  to  any  body  of 
men  who  happen  to  have  a  large  amount  of  capital,  but  it  means 
fair  play  to  the  great  body  of  the  people ;  and  that  means  that  any 
legislation  enacted  must  be  fair  to  the  operator,  to  the  workman  and 
to  the  public.  We  can  not  continue  as  we  are.  We  must  be  allowed 
to  combine.  If  we  are  not  allowed  to  combine,  the  ruinous  competi- 
tion in  which  we  are  engaged  will  wipe  those  now  engaged  in  the 
industry  out  of  existence.  The  industry  will  not  be  wiped  out,  but 
new  capital  will  come  in  and  reorganize  it  upon  a  new  basis.  Let 
me  say  to  you,  that  those  who  today  oppose  the  enactment  of  any 
law  permitting  greater  profit  to  the  business,  who  oppose  any  change 
in  the  Sherman  anti-trust  law,  are  short  sighted.  Let  me  tell  you 
they  will  pay  high  interest  for  every  dollar's  worth  of  coal  that 
they  are  buying  for  ninety  cents.  For  every  dollar's  worth  that 
they  buy  for  ninety  cents,  they  will  pay  $2,  and  why?  Simply 
because  the  profits  that  have  been  lost  must  be  made  up.  The  banks 
must  be  repaid  the  money  that  has  been  borrowed.  The  red  ink  must 
be  written  off  the  ledger.  And  not  only  that — the  tremendous 
waste  in  the  industry,  as  it  is  today  being  run,  must  be  paid  for  in 
the  future.  And  we  have  no  right,  and  those  who  are  buying  our 
coal  today  have  no  right,  to  plunder  the  resources  of  this  country, 
to  waste  the  heritage  of  those  who  shall  follow,  in  a  crazy  desire 
to  buy  a  thing  for  less  than  it  is  worth,  a  thing  which  is  one  of  the 
greatest  necessities  of  human  life. 

To  the  work  then  of  constructive  legislation  that  will  permit 
a  profit  to  those  in  the  industry ;  that  will  permit  combination ;  that 
will  permit  the  conservation  of  the  product  in  which  we  are  dealing, 
and  on  the  other  hand  that  will  conserve  the  rights  of  those  who 
buy  and  those  who  labor.  (Applause.) 


What  the  West  Needs  in  Cocl  Land  Legislation. 

BY  DR.  GEORGE  OTIS  SMITH, 
DIRECTOR  OF  THE  U.   S.   GEOLOGICAL   SURVEY. 


In  any  discussion  of  the  needed  revision  of  our  public  land 
laws,  a  due  share  of  attention  must  be  given  to  the  statutes  relating 
to  the  coal  lands.  While  certain  classes  of  lands  in  the  Western 
States  have  largely  passed  into  private  ownership,  the  public's  hold- 
;ng  of  coal  lands  is  still  large  enough  to  deserve  most  serious  con- 
sideration. West  of  the  One  Hundredth  Meridian  lies  the  Nation's 
greatest  coal  reserve,  estimated  at  more  than  a  million  million  tons 
of  anthracite,  bituminous  and  sub-bituminous  coal,  and  title  to  from 
sixty  to  eighty-five  per  cent  of  this  tonnage  is  in  the  United  States. 
It  is  self-evident  that  this  fuel  reserve  is  the  key  to  the  present  and 
future  industrial  development  of  the  Rocky  Mountain  region. 
Utilization  of  the  water  power  resources  will  be  an  important  factor 
locally,  and  for  several  decades  fuel  oil  may  be  expected  to  affect 
the  industrial  situation,  but  so  far  as  we  can  now  forsee  coal  must 
be  regarded  as  the  principal  source  of  power.  Its  present  impor- 
tance is  shown  by  the  fact  that  the  coal  production  of  the  Rocky 
Mountain  States  was  14.7  per  cent  greater  in  1910  than  in  1909, 
although  for  the  whole  United  States  the  increase  in  coal  output 
for  the  same  period  was  less  than  9  per  cent.  Utilization  of  these 
Western  coal  deposits  that  will  meet  both  present  and  future  de- 
mands is  the  end  that  must  be  served  in  whatever  public  policy  is. 
adopted.  The  West  needs  and  has  a  right  to  demand  full  oppor- 
tunity for  legitimate,  energetic  business  development,  but  that  does 
not  include  the  right  to  inflict  an  unearned  speculative  tax  on  the 
future  consumer. 

Full  opportunity  on  the  public  coal  lands  can  be  denned  both 
from  the  standpoint  of  the  coal  operator  and  from  the  point  of  view 
of  the  consuming  public.  In  my  opinion,  the  operator  can  justly 
ask  two  things:  .First,  the  right  to  occupy  an  acreage  sufficiently 
large  for  economic  operation  during  an  average  mine-life  period, 
and  second,  freedom  from  too  great  investment  risks.  Economic 
operation  we  will  understand  to  mean  the  installation  of  such  equip- 
ment as  will  secure  maximum  recovery  at  low  cost  with  proper 
safe-guarding  of 'both  life  and  property,  while  excessive  investment 
risks  refer  to  capital  outlays  out  of  proportion  to  expected  profits 
of  operation.  Roth  of  the  factors  are  in  reality  of  hardly  less  in- 


286         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

terest  to  the  public  than  to  the  operator  for  upon  them  depend  in 
the  last  analysis  much  that  determine  prices  and  concerns  general 
welfare.  The  public  should  also  demand  that  no  right  to  the  public 
coal  land  shall  be  granted  except  for  present  use.  Actual  develop- 
ment must  be  made  the  first  condition  of  occupancy  of  any  part  of 
what  now  remains  in  the  public  domain. 

The  present  status  of  coal  mining  in  the  West  is  the  resultant 
of  two  factors,  land  ownership  and  consumptive  demand  for  coal. 
The  large  holdings  of  coal  land  legitimately  acquired  through  rail- 
road grants  and  those  secured  by  coal  companies  through  dummy 
entrymen,  and  by  purchase  of  agricultural  entries  as  well  as  those 
patented  to  the  states  as  non-mineral  lands,  together  constitute  a 
coal  land  supply  that  has  practically  met  the  demand.  The  strict 
administration  of  the  public  domain  during  the  past  few  years, 
however,  has  shut  off  all  opportunity  for  wholesale  accumulation  of 
coal  lands  under  cover  of  the  homestead  and  other  laws.  Up  to  the 
present  time  the  acquisition  of  the  coal  land  in  the  public  domain 
has  been  largely  accomplished  without  resource  to  the  coal  land 
law,  so  that  the  question  becomes  opportune — is  the  present  coal 
land  law  adequate  to  meet  present  and  future  needs  ? 

This  law  relating  to  coal  lands  is  less  unsatisfactory  than  many 
of  the  mineral  land  laws  now  on  the  statute  books.  By  its  pro- 
vision for  the  valuation  of  coal  lands  at  an  adequate  price  the  law 
makes  possible  a  selling  price  that  may  promote  development  and 
at  the  same  time  prevent  monopolization.  As  is  pointed  out  in  a 
public  statement  by  Secretary  Fisher,  the  present  governmental 
policy  of  basing  the  valuation  of  public  coal  lands  upon  the  tonnage 
and  quality  of  coal  which  underlies  the  tract  results  in  prices  that 
are  neither  unreasonable  noT  exorbitant ;  the  purchaser  instead  of 
paying  a  flat  rate  per  acre  in  reality  pays  for  the  coal  by  the  ton 
at  values  graded  according  to  the  quality  and  the  character  of  the 
coal.  Consideration  is  also  given  to  every  known  physical  and 
commercial  factor  affecting  the  value  of  the  coal  of  the  particular 
locality.  The  purpose  has  been  to  protect  the  present  interests  of 
the  West  by  making  the  selling  price  of  coal  land  approach  but  in 
no  case  exceed  the  present  purchase  value  of  a  royalty  under  a 
leasehold,  such  as  the  states  of  Colorado  and  Wyoming  or  land 
companies  in  the  West  grant  to  the  lessee,  and  at  the  same  time 
to  protect  the  future  interests  of  the  people  by  having  these  prices 
such  as  to  discourage  long-time  speculative  holdings.  We  must 
always  keep  in  mind  the  fact  that  large  speculative  holdings  are  sure 
to  affect  the  future  price  of  coal  in  two  ways — through  the  possi- 


NEEDS   OF   WEST    IN    COAL   LAND    LEGISLATION       287 

bility  of  monopoly  and  through  the  certainty  of  accumulated  in- 
terest charges  on  the  cost  of  the  idle  land. 

The  test  of  any  policy  is  in  the  results  it  produces.  That  the 
prices  put  upon  the  public  coal  lands  are  not  prohibitive  can  be 
shown  by  the  record  of  sales.  In  the  four  years  following  the 
adoption  of  the  policy  of  classifying  and  valuing  the  coal  lands, 
the  sales  have  increased  12^2  per  cent  in  acreage  and  36  per  cent 
in  value  as  compared  with  the  four  years  preceding,  and  this  in 
spite  of  the  fact  that  the  four  years  since  July  ist,  1907,  have 
included  a  period  o "  industrial  depression  and  slow  recovery  as  con- 
trasted with  the  preceding  period  of  boom  conditions.  So  far, 
therefore,  as  its  provision  for  pricing  is  concerned,  the  present  law 
appears  to  be  as  satisfactory  as  a  sale  law  can  be. 

One  serious  defect  exists  in  the  present  law  which  all  must 
admit  demands  an  immediate  remedy.  The  restriction  of  legal  pur- 
chases to  a  maximum  of  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  for  an  in- 
dividual or  six  hundred  and  forty  acres  for  an  association  is 
absurdly  out  of  accord  with  good  mining  practice.  The  fixed 
charges  of  a  modern  coal  mine  equipped  so  as  to  safeguard  life  and 
property  and  to  secure  maximum  recovery  are  too  high  to  be 
assessed  against  the  tonnage  of  so  limited  a  tract,  especially  where 
the  coal  seam  is  of  moderate  thickness.  Furthermore,  unless  pro- 
vision is  made  for  commercial  operation  on  the  remaining  lands 
too  great  an  advantage  is  secured  to  the  land  grant  railroads  and 
the  large  coal  companies  already  in  possession  of  considerable  areas 
of  high-grade  coal.  There  is  no  public  need  of  having  either  in- 
dividuals or  large  corporations  acquire  large  acreages  of  these  lands 
for  long  time  holding  without  development.  Nor  is  there  any 
sound  economic  reason  for  the  disposition  of  the  coal  lands  in  small 
tracts.  The  homestead  law  expresses  the  spirit  of  American  in- 
stitutions in  that  it  has  encouraged  every  citizen  to  own  a  home  but 
there  is  neither  sentiment  nor  sense  in  a  proposition  to  sell  at  a 
low  price  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  of  coal  land  to  an  individual 
— every  citizen  does  not  need  to  own  a  coal  mine. 

In  the  endeavor  to  discourage  long  time  speculative  investment 
in  the  coal  lands  and  at  the  same  time  permit  present  development, 
the  fixing  of  selling  prices  has  involved  difficulties.  It  has  been 
recognized  that  an  ideal  adjustment  of  values  is  well  nigh  unat- 
tainable for  many  if  not  for  most  coal  lands.  These  difficulties 
suggest  the  wisdom  of  considering  the  other  method  of  disposition, 
namely  a  leasing  system.  As  Secretary  Fisher  has  stated,  "It  may 
well  be  that  a  liberal  but  wisely  protected  leasing  law  would  be 


288         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

found  to  promote  (development  more  vigorously  than  any  system  of 
outright  purchase."  Thus,  under  a  leasehold  law  any  uncertain- 
ties as  to  quantity  of  coal  or  as  to  costs  of  operation  would  not 
need  to  be  so  critically  estimated  in  advance.  There  would  be  no 
necessity  of  discounting  every  possible  future  condition,  but 
periodic  adjustment  of  rate  of  royalty  could  insure  all  equities  of 
both  operator  and  public,  and  I  should  expect  that  such  adjustments 
might  as  often  be  downward  as  upward. 

Under  a  leasing  system,  too,  it  would  be  comparatively  easy 
so  to  adjust  the  relationship  between  ground  r  ital  and  royalty,  as 
to  prevent  the  acquisition  of  coal  deposits  until  actual  operation 
became  profitable.  The  greatest  advantage  of  the  lease  system  to 
the  operator  directly,  and  to  the  public  indirectly,  is  relief  from  the 
large  capital  outlay  now  required  in  the  acquisition  of  the  large 
acreage  absolutely  necessary  for  a  modern  mine.  This  argument 
advanced  against  the  present  policy  of  valuing  the  public  coal  lands 
at  even  conservative  prices  thus  becomes  an  argument  for  a  lease- 
hold law. 

The  objections  to  a  leasing  system  are  of  two  classes ;  those 
based  upon  political  theory  and  those  based  upon  economic  con- 
siderations. Under  political  objections,  I  will  place  the  arguments 
so  often  put  forward  against  Federal  landlordism,  namely  that  the 
Eastern  coal  lands  were  disposed  of  in  fee  and  that  the  West  de- 
serves the  same  treatment;  and,  further,  that  the  natural  resources 
of  the  West  should  not  be  made  a  source  of  profit  to  relieve  the 
Eastern  taxpayer.  Such  arguments  can  be  easily  answered.  Past 
mistakes  are  poor  precedents  for  future  blunders.  The  citizen  who 
argues  for  the  continuance  of  the  liberal,  wide-open  public  land 
policy  of  the  past  is  apt  to  be  one  who  wishes  a  middleman's  profit 
on  a  small  investment,  and  we  know  that  East  or  West,  the  owner 
of  coal  lands  acquired  as  agricultural  lands,  or  in  any  ether  way, 
at  a  low  price,  makes  his  large  and  unearned  profit  out  of  the  coal 
operator,  and  through  him,  out  of  the  public.  Too  large  a  percentage 
of  the  coal  output  of  this  country  is  now  mined  under  lease,  to 
justify  this  objection  to  allowing  the  people  themselves  to  lease 
direct.  As  regards  the  argument  of  reserving  Western  resources 
for  the  W7est,  too  few  people  in  the  public  land  states  realize  that 
under  the  present  system  of  sale,  the  proceeds  from  the  coal  lands 
go  directly  into  W'estern  development  through  the  Reclamation 
Fund,  and  cannot  be  used  to  relieve  the  Eastern  taxpayers  except 
as  the  whole  country  benefits  by  the  agricultural  developmert  of 
these  public  land  states.  It  is  reasonable  to  expect  that  any  leasing 


NEEDS   OF   WEST   IN   COAL   LAND   LEGISLATION       289 

law  would  make  similar  provision  for  the  local  use  of  revenues 
resulting  from  leases  and  indeed  several  of  the  bills  already  intro- 
duced in  Congress  have  specifically  recognized  the  wisdom  of  such 
disposition. 

Much  more  worthy  of  consideration  are  the  objections  to  the 
lease  system  based  upon  the  fear  that  the  cost  of  coal  to  the  con- 
sumer would  be  increased.  I  regard  this  result  as  altogether  im- 
probable. The  royalty  paid  into  the  United  States  treasury  can  be 
no  greater  a  tax  upon  the  consumer  than  the  royalty  paid  to  the 
State  of  Colorado,  or  to  the  railroad  land  company,  or  to  the  farmer. 
The  average  price  of  bituminous  coal  at  the  mine,  in  the  United 
States,  last  year  was  $1.12,  which  usually  includes  either  a  royalty 
or  an  equivalent  interest  charge,  either  of  which  would  probably  be 
greater  than  any  Government  royalty.  This  amount  forms  so  small 
a  part  of  the  price  to  the  consumer  that  the  royalty  under  a  Fed- 
eral lease  could  be  of  but  little  concern  to  the  public,  if,  indeed,  it 
resulted  in  any  increase  in  the  first  cost  of  the  coal. 

However,  if  we  consider  the  lease  as  contrasted  with  sale  out- 
right to  the  coal  operator,  the  reduction  in  capital  necessary  for 
original  investment  and  the  elimination  of  many  of  the  risks  in 
such  investment  must  result  in  reducing  cost  of  operation  to  the 
mine  owner,  and  thus  make  possible  a  correspondingly  lower  price 
of  coal  to  the  consumer. 

The  other  objection  to  the  lease  system  is  that  based  upon  fears 
of  expensive  Federal  management,  and  of  inefficient  administration 
or  even  mal-administration.  These  are  possibilities  which  we  must 
squarely  face ;  but  my  faith  in  the  efficiency  of  public  administration 
is  increasing  to  such  a  degree  that  this  argument  against  the  leas- 
ing is  rapidly  losing  its  force  with  me.  If  we  look  beyond  our  own 
Rockies,  and  out  across  the  Pacific,  we  discover  that  a  Govern- 
mental leasing  system  for  coal  lands  is  not  a  theory  but  an  actual 
working  fact.  The  Anglo-Saxon  peoples  of  the  Australasian  States 
have  found  the  leasing  system  not  only  practicable,  but  indeed 
preferable  to  the  sale  of  coal  lands.  In  New  Zealand,  where  for 
thirty  years  the  laws  have  permitted  to  the  operator  a  choice  of 
either  sale  or  lease  of  public  mineral  lands,  a  conclusive  argument 
for  the  leasing  system  is  given  in  the  latest  statistics  of  mineral 
production,  which  show  that  approximately  90  per  cent  of  the  total 
mineral  product  of  that  country  was  mined  under  leasehold.  If  our 
trans-Pacific  neighbors  can  administer  a  lease  law  so  satisfactorily 
and  if  the  mine  operators  in  New  Zealand  prefer  operation  under 


290        PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

leasehold,  will  a  similar  system  be  fraught  with  either  danger  or 
failure  in  the  United  States? 

We  must  face  the  fact  that  Uncle  Sam  is  a  landlord  on  a  large 
scale — a  coal  baron,  if  you  please;  and  that  the  question  before  us 
is  how  these  millions  of  acres  of  coal  land  are  to  be  disposed  of  so 
as  to  serve  the  just  needs  of  the  operator  who  offers  his  capital, 
technical  skill,  and  business  experience,  asking  in  return  a  fair 
profit,  and  at  the  same  time  to  protect  the  public  interests. 

All  that  the  West  needs  is  first,  opportunity  for  the  coal  in- 
dustry to  develop  as  fast  as  the  market  justifies  expansion,  and 
with  the  least  possible  risks ;  and  second,  opportunity  for  the  public 
to  secure  its  coal  at  prices  based  on  a  minimum  cost  of  production 
and  without  any  addition  of  unearned  and  undue  tribute^  to  private 
landlords  who  desire  to  speculate  on  the  future  needs  of  the  con- 
sumer. These  ends,  I  believe,  can  be  best  attained  by  legislation 
inaugurating  a  Federal  leasing  system  for  coal  lands  of  the  public 
domain. 


The  Future  of  Alaska  Coal.1 

BY  ALFRED  H.  BROOKS, 
. 'HI10F  OF  THE  ALASKAN  DIVISION  OF  THE  U.  S.  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY. 


I  fully  appreciate  the  honor  of  being  invited  to  address  the 
American  Mining  Congress  on  a  matter  of  such  importance  as  the 
future  of  Alaska  coal.  An  adequate  treatment  of  this  subject  would 
require  not  only  a  far  more  exhaustive  study  of  the  coal  resources 
of  the  territory  than  has  yet  been  made,  but  also  of  the  industrial 
conditions  of  the  Pacific  margin  of  the  North  American,  continent, 
where  a  market  for  this  coal  must  be  found.  Furthermore,  it 
necessitates  a  look  into  the  future — a  consideration  of  probable  in- 
crease of  population,  of  commerce,  and  of  industry.  This  problem 
also  involves  a  careful  consideration  of  other  possible  sources  of 
fuel  or  power  which  now  or  in  the  future  may  come  into  compe- 
tition with  Alaska  coal. 

The  brief  time  devoted  to  the  preparation  of  this  address,  if 
there  were  no  other  reason,  has  prevented  the  exhaustive  study  of 
the  elements  entering  into  the  problem.  On  the  present  occasion 
I  can  do  little  more  than  to  summarize  the  data  which  have  been 
published  elsewhere.2 

What  is  the  future  of  Alaska  coal  ?  The  answer  is  simple 
enough — it  will  be  burned.  Like  all  simple  replies,  it  does  not 
'strike  at  the  root  of  the  problem.  The  fundamental  question  is: 
Where  and  when  will  it  be  burned?  To  answer  this  larger  ques- 
tion demands  a  consideration  of  the  distribution,  quality  and  avail- 
ability of  the  coal  and  its  present  and  future  market. 

The  Coal  Fields. 

\  measure  of  the  relative  importance  of  the  Alaska  coal  fields 
may  be  obtained  by  comparing  the  quantity  of  fuel  they  contain 
with  that  of  better  known  areas.  Unfortunately,  the  data  on 
Alaska  coal  tonnage  is  very  incomplete,  as  only  one-tenth  of  the 
areas  mapped  as  underlain  by  coal-bearing  formations  has  been 
surveyed  in  sufficient  detail  to  admit  of  tonnage  estimates.  The 
estimates,  made  in  1909,  show  a  total  coal  tonnage,  including 

'Published  by  permission  of  the  Director  of  the  U.  S..  Geological  Survey. 

2Much  of  this  address  is  abstracted  from  or  based  upon  two  papers  already 
published;  namely: 

"Alaska  coal  and  its  utilization:"  Bull.  U.   S.  Geol.  Survey  No.  442,  1910. 

"Geography  in  the  development  of  the  Alaska  coal  deposits:"  Prpc.  Assn, 
American  Geographers  for  year  1911,  Vol.  I,  1911. 


292         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

lignites  as  well  as  high-grade  fuels,  of  15,000,000  tons.1  As  only 
one-tenth  of  the  known  coal  fields  has  been  surveyed  and  as  at 
least  one-fifth  of  the  territory  is  geologically  unknown,  it  is  prob- 
ably safe  to  conclude  that  the  total  tonnage  is  ten  times  this  esti- 
mate.2 This  estimate  of  150,000,000  tons  is  intended  to  show 
simply  what  the  ultimate  coal  tonnage  may  be  and  has  no  bearing 
on  the  present  coal  situation,  for  much  the  larger  part  of  this  coal 
is  not  available  now  and  will  not  be  for  many  generations  to  come. 
This  total  estimated  amount  of  Alaska  coal  is  about  4}/2  per  cent 
of  the  total  estimated  tonnage  of  the -United  States  and  its  pos- 
sessions and  a  little  less  than  15  per  cent  of  the  coal  in  the  lands 
still  in  government  ownership.  It  is  about  a  third  more. than -the 
original  coal  supply  of  the  state  of  Pennsylvania.  The  coals  of 
Pennsylvania  are,  however,  of  a  high  grade,  while  much  the  larger 
part  of  Alaska  coal  is  lignitic. 

In  view  of  the  fact  that  Alaska  is  almost  continental  in  its 
dimensions,  and  that  the  coal  fields  are  very  widely  distributed 
within  the  territory,  these  comparisons  are  in  some  respects  mis- 
leading. It  becomes  necessary  to  qualify  any  statement  in  regard 
to  total  quantity  by  considering  what  fields  are  so  situated  as  to 
be  available  for  present  use  as  well  as  what  part  of  them  include 
coals  of  sufficiently  high  grade  to  warrant  export.  For  this  pur- 
pose the  Alaskan  coal  fields  can  be  conveniently  divided  into  three 
economic  provinces,  based  on  geography.  The  first  is  the  Pacific 
slope,  which  comprises  the  mountainous  area  drained  to  the  Pacific 
ocean.  Here  there  are  large  quantities  of  lignitic,  with  some  sub- 
bituminous  coals,  which  are  on  or  close  to  tidewater.  Also  fields 
of  high-grade  coals  which  can  be  reached  from  open  ports  on  the 
Pacific  by  railways  from  25  to  200  miles  in  length.  From  the 
coastal  terminals  of  these  railways  to  Puget  Sound  ports  the  dis- 
tance is  about  1,260  to  1,400  statute  miles,  and  about  2,000  miles 
to  San  Francisco.  This  province  is  readily  accessible  and  its  re- 
sources can  therefore  be  considered  an  asset  of  the  present  genera- 
tion. It  contains  about  40  per  cent  of  the  known  coal  resources  of 
Alaska,  besides  valuable  deposits  of  metals  and  considerable  areas 
of  arable  land,  all  of  which  can  be  opened  up  by  railways.  Some 
of -these  coals,  as  has  been  shown,  are  of  a  high  grade  and  located 
favorably  for  export. 

The  central  region  includes  the  area  lying  north  of  the  coastal 

aBrooks,  Alfred  H.,  Alaska  coal  and  its  utilization:  Bull.  U.  S.  Geol.  Survey 
No.  442,  pp.  53-55,  1910. 

2Since  this  estimate  was  made  the  survey  of  one  field  showed  an  additional 
amount  of  lignitic  coal  amounting  to  9,000,000  tons. 


THE    FUTURE    OF    ALASKA    COAL  293 

mountain  barrier  and  is  drained  to  Bering  sea  by  the  Yukon  and 
Kuskokwim  rivers.  It  includes  about  35  per  cent  of  the  known 
coal  besides  important  gold  deposits  and  considerable  arable  land. 
To  reach  this  region  by  railway  from  open  ports  on  the  Pacific 
will  require  400  to  600  miles  of  railway.  The  coals  are  of  a  lignitic 
character  and  under  no  conditions  which  can  now  be  foreseen  could- 
they  be  mined  for  export.  The  coals  of  these  fields,  therefore, 
have  value  only  for  local  use — a  value  which  is  enhanced  by  the 
presence  of  other  mineral  resources,  by  arable  lands,  and  by  the 
relative  scarcity  of  other  fuel. 

The  third  province  comprises  northern  Alaska,  draining  into 
the  Arctic  ocean.  This  includes  about  25  per  cent  of  the  known 
coal,  with  considerable  of  a  high  grade.  This  part  of  Alaska  is 
almost  entirely  isolated,  as  it  is  too  far  from  open  ports  on  the 
Pacific  to  permit  of  railway  connection,  and  its  rivers  are  locked  in 
ice  for  all  but  two  months  in  the  year.  Most  of  this  field  is  un- 
explored, and  the  stated  estimate  of  tonnage  is  probably  far  below 
the  actual  tonnage.  There  is  good  reason  to  believe  that  its  coal 
supply  may  exceed  all  that  of  the  rest  of  Alaska,  but  whatever  it 
may  be,  the  coal  has  no  value  unless  as  an  asset  to  future  genera- 
tions. 

It  appears,  therefore,  (i)  that  the  Pacific  slope  coal  is  the 
most  valuable  of  the  Alaska  coal  supply  to  the  present  generation, 
for  it  can  be  exported;  (2)  that  the  coal  of  the  central  province 
has  value  only  as  local  population  and  industries  develop,  and 
(3)  that  the  coal  of  the  Arctic  slope  will  not  be  drawn  upon  until 
that  future  time  when  the  more  accessible  coals  of  -the  world  ap- 
proach exhaustion. 

A  discussion  of  the  development  of  Alaska  coal  fields  will, 
therefore,  be  concerned  chiefly  with  those  of  the  Pacific  slope. 
These  coals  are  the  only  ones  in  the  territory  available  for  the 
growing  population  of  the  western  side  of  the  North  American 
continent  and  are,  therefore,  of  national  as  well  as  local  importance. 
The  estimates  indicate  that  the  Pacific  coast  province  includes 
about  6,000,000  tons,  of  which  nearly  one-half  is  lignite.  It  is 
probably  safe  to  multiply  the  estimates  of  lignite  by  ten.  Less 
definite  evidence  is  available  regarding  possible  additional  tonnage 
of  bituminous  and  better-grade  coals.  It  is  known,  however,  that 
coal  occurs  in  regions  adjacent  to  both  the  Bering  River  and 
Matanuska  fields,  and  it  is  reasonably  certain  that  these  fields 
will  be  found  to  be  much  larger  than  at  present  supposed. 

Much  of  the  coal  of  the  Pacific  slope  fields  can  be  made  avail- 


294         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

able  by  the  construction  of  comparatively  short  railways.  They 
include  considerable  high-grade  steaming  and  coking  coal,  as  well 
as  a  much  larger  quantity  of  lignite*.  Of  the  geologic  occurrence,  it 
need  only  be  said  that  the  lignites  occur  in  rocks  which  are  little 
disturbed,  while  the  high-grade  coals  are  highly  folded  and  faulted, 
but  not  so  much  so  but  what  some  of  the  beds  at  least  admit  of 
profitable  exploitation. 

Quality  of  Coal. 

As  is  now  generally  known,  the  chemical  quality  of  the  coal 
of  the  Bering  river  and  Matanuska  fields  leaves  little  to  be  de- 
sired. These  fields  include  high-grade  steaming  and  -coking  coals 
comparable  to  the  best  coals  of  the  east,  and  also  some  anthracite. 
The  physical  character  of  many  of  the  coal  beds  is  much  less  favor- 
able, for  they  have  been  crushed  to  such  an  extent  that  they  will 
furnish  a  large  percentage  of  slack,  which  does  not  detract  from 
the  value  of  the  coking  coal.  In  both  the  Bering  river  and 
Matanuska  fields,  as  shown  by  the  studies  of  Dr.  Martin,1  the  coal 
beds  have  been  much  deformed,  thus  greatly  enhancing  the  cost  of 
mining  and  in  case  of  some  of  the  beds  prohibiting  altogether  the 
economic  recovery  of  the  coal.  This,  as  Dr.  Martin's  survey  has 
shown,  is  notably  true  of  the  western  margin  of  the  Bering  river 
field,  where  there  is  much  faulting,  and  of  the  northeastern  and 
anthracitic  part  of  the  field,  where  close  folding  and  faulting  have 
in  many  instances  so  crushed  the  beds  as  to  probably  make  them 
worthless  for  mining. 

The  character  of  the  Matanuska  coals  is  less  well  known, 
as  but  few  openings  have  been  made  on  the  beds.  Locally  these 
appear  to  be  somewhat  less  disturbed  than  the  coals  of  Bering 
river  field,  but  this  may  be  offset  in  cost  of  mining  by  the  fact  that 
a  large  number  of  intrusives  are  present.  While  there  are  differ- 
ences of  opinion  as  to  the  percentage  of  coal  from  these  two  fields 
that  can  be  commercially  mined  under  present  conditions,  the  fact 
remains  that  they  include  much  workable  coal  of  a  higher  grade 
than  any  in  that  part  of  the  North  American  continent  tributary  to 
the  Pacific  ocean. 

Transportation. 

Transportation  is  not  so  serious  an  element  in  the  develop- 
ment of  the  lignitic  coals  as  in  the  high-grade  coals,  for  the  former 

1Martin,  George  C.,  Geology  and  mineral  resources  of  the  Controller  Bay 
region:  Bull.  U.  S.  Geol.  Survey  No.  335,  1906. 

Martin,  George  C.,  Preliminary  report  on  a  detailed  survey  of  part  of  the 
Matanuska  coal  fields:  Bull.  U.  S.  Geol.  Survey  No  480,  1911.  The  complete 
report  on  this  field  is  in  print. 


THE   FUTURE    OF   ALASKA    COAL  295 

will  probably  only  be  mined  for  local  use.  In  some  instances  this 
is  not  true.  For  example,  a  railway  some  50  to  60  miles  in  length 
will  have  to  be  constructed  to  the  Nenana  field  of  the  Tanana  valley 
if  the  coals  there  are  to  be  carried  to  market.1  None  of  the  high- 
grade  coals  can,  however,  be  made  available  without  the  investment 
of  many  millions  of  dollars  in  railways  and  terminal  facilities. 

The  Bering  river  field  lies  about  25  miles  from  the  nearest 
tidewater  at  Controller  bay  and  54  or  90  miles,  depending  on  the 
route  chosen,  from  tidewater  at  Cordova  on  Orca  bay.  The  54- 
mile  route  involves  the  crossing  of  a  pass  about  350  feet  in  height, 
while  the  9O-mile  route  is  practically  on  a  water  grade.  Thirty 
miles  of  the  Copper  River  railway,  already  constructed,  is  avail- 
able for  either  of  these  routes.  A  railway  from  the  coal  field  to 
Controller  bay  would  have  a  water  grade.  Controller  bay — now 
but  an  indifferent  harbor— can  be  made  available  as  a  shipping  port 
by  a  sufficient  expenditure  of  money.  Orca  bay,  on  the  other  hand. 
is  a  good  harbor,  but  involves  a  much  longer  haul.  The  Matan- 
uska  field  is  60  miles  from  a  summer  port  on  Knik  Arm,  and 
180  miles  from  Seward  on  Resurrection  bay — an  excellent  harbor 
open  to  navigation  throughout  the  year.  Seventy-one  miles  of  this 
railway  (the  Alaska  Northern)  is  completed  and  crosses  two 
passes,  700  and  1,000  feet  in  height. 

It  will  be  shown  that  the-  heavy  investment  for  railways 
necessary  to  open  these  fields  hardly  seems  justified  with  the  present 
visible  market  for  Alaska  coal.  A  part  of  the  mileage  from  Cor- 
dova to  the  Bering  river  field  will  be  utilized  for  the  traffic  from 
the  Copper  river  region  to  the  coast.  The  railway  from  Seward 
to  the  Matanuska  field  will  pass  through  or  close  to  promising 
auriferous  districts,  and  if  extended,  as  planned,  to  the  Tanana 
valley,  would  serve  as  a  trunk  line  connecting  tidewater  with  the 
Yukon  basin. 

Competing  Fuels. 

The  market  for  Alaska  coal  will  evidently  depend  in  large 
measure  on  the  mineral  fuels  or  other  sources  of  power  with  which 
it  comes  in  competition.  Here  again  the  low-grade  bituminous  coals 
and  lignites  need  not  be  considered,  for  they  will  only  be  utilized 
under  non-competitive  conditions.  On  the  other  hand,  the  high- 
grade  coals  must  meet  competition  in  open  market. 

There  are  many  undeveloped  water  powers  in  the  Pacific  states 


'It  has  been  suggested  that  the  energy  of  these  coals  be  utilized  for  the 
Fairbanks  and  other  gold-bearing  districts  by  transmitting  it  in  the  form  of 
electricity. 


296         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

and  Alaska,  and  these  could  be  made  to  furnish  energy  which  might 
compete  with  any  obtained  from  Alaska  coal.  Eventually,  how- 
ever, recourse  will  be  had  to  the  mineral  fuels,  as  the  water  powers 
are  not  sufficient  to  meet  the  demands  of  future  industries.  There- 
fore the  competing  mineral  fuels  are  probably  the  most  important 
element  in  the  problem  of  markets  for  the  Alaska  coal.' 

The  western  slope  of  the  North  American  continent  is,  on  the 
whole,  but  poorly  supplied  with  coal,  and  most  of  it  is  not  of  a 
high  grade.  Some  fairly  good  bituminous  coals  occur  in  Washing- 
ton, but  not  in  large  quantities.  The  other  Pacific  states  are  even 
less  well  provided  with  coal.  In  British  Columbia  the  situation  is 
far  better,  and  for  many  years  the  west  coast  industries  have  drawn 
heavily  on  the  coal  fields  of  Vancouver  Island.  The  recent  dis- 
covery of  high-grade  coal,  said  to  be  in  large  quantity  in  the  head- 
water region  of  the  Skeena  river,  may  afford  another  source  of 
fuel  for  the  Pacific  province.  This  field  is  said  to  lie  about  130 
miles  from  the  coast. 

Turning  now  to  the  coal  supply  of  other  lands  bordering  the 
Pacific.  The  South  American  countries  have  insufficient  coal  for 
their  own  use  and  are  -drawing  heavily  on  England.  Australia  is 
well  supplied  with  coal,  though  most  of  it  is  not  of  high  grade. 
Her  mines  are  furnishing  coal  to  South  America  and  even  to  Cali- 
fornia. China's  coal  fields,  though  of  enormous  extent,  are  for 
the  most  part  unavailable  because  of  the  lack  of  railways.  When 
her  teeming  population  turns  to  industries  requiring  fuel,  the  coal 
is  likely  to  be  needed  at  home.  It  is  a  significant  fact,  however, 
that  a  shipment  of  Chinese  coal  has  recently  been  received  at  San 
Francisco.  Japan,  though  an  exporter  of  coal,  which  is  not,  how- 
ever, of  high  grade,  has  none  to  spare,  as  her  reserves  are  small. 

It  is  evident,  therefore,  that  the  lands  which,  from  the  stand- 
point of  commerce,  are  tied  together  by  the  Pacific,  do  not  promise 
to  become  serious  competitors  with  the  Alaska  coal.  The  opening 
of  the  Panama  canal  will  change  the  situation.  Then  the  eastern 
coals — by  water  transportation  only  about  6,000  statute  miles  to 
California,  with  an  assured  return  cargo — can  probably  compete 
with  the  Alaska  coal.  This  great  engineering  feat  will  change 
the  boundaries  of  economic  and  geographic  provinces.  In  con- 
sidering the  broad  problem,  however,  it  would  appear  unwise  to 
ship  coals  from  near  the  centers  of  population  to  the  west  coast, 
especially  at  the  expense  of  fuel  used  in  transportation,  and  any 
such  movement  can  hardly  persist  under  the  operation  of  economic 
laws. 


THE    FUTURE    OF    ALASKA    COAL  297 

Had  the  Alaska  coals  been  developed  ten  years  ago,  when 
they  first  attracted  notice,  they  would  have  found  a  ready  market, 
for  at  that  time  there  was  a  shortage  of  fuel  along  the  Pacific 
seaboard.  Since  that  time,  however,  the  industrial  situation  has 
been  entirely  changed  by  the  enormous  increase  in  the  output  of 
the  California  oil  fields.  In  1901  the  California  oil  production 
was  8,786,330  barrels,  while  in  1910  it  was  73,010,560  barrels. 
Mr.  Parker1  estimates  that,  of  this  quantity,  some  40,000,000  to 
50,000,000  barrels  was  used  as  fuel  oil,  representing  an  equivalent 
in  heating  value  of  about  11,000,000  to  12,000,000  tons  of  coal. 
The  total  coal  consumption  in  the  Pacific  coast  states  and  terri- 
tories is  estimated  to  have  been  4,312,641  tons  in  1901  and  4,812,398 
in  1911.  Therefore,  in  spite  of  the  enormous  growth  of  popula- 
tion and  industries  during  this  decade,  because  of  the  increased 
use  of  fuel  oil  the  increase  in  coal  consumption  has  been  only  13 
per  cent. 

Practically  all  the  west  coast  railways  are  today  either  using 
oil  or  preparing  to  do  so.  In  Alaska  oil  is  rapidly  being  substituted 
for  coal  on  the  railways,  steamers,  and  in  the  mining  plants.  With 
the  putting  on  the  market  of  a  constantly  increasing  quantity  of 
fuel  oil,  the  outlook  for  the  coal-mining  industry  is  not  very 
hopeful.  It  is  therefore  fuel  oil  and  not  coal  in  which  Alaska 
coal  will  find  its  strongest  competitor. 

Present  Market. 

On  the  basis  of  the  mineral  fuel  consumption  of  1908-'  I  esti- 
mated that  the  Alaska  high-grade  coal  should  find  a  market  for 
500,000  to  1,000,000  tons  of  coal.  Since  then  the  oil  production 
has  increased  at  such  bounds  that  it  seems  probable  that  500,000 
would  now  be  a  safer  estimate.  The  present  annual  consumption 
in  Alaska  is  only  about  100,000  tons,  of  which  about  one-fifth  is 
in  regions  where  the  local  coal  might  not  be  able  to  compete  with 
that  from  outside  sources.  Unfortunately,  as  already  shown,  with 
the  increased  use  of  oil,  even  this  market  is  rapidly  dwindling. 
The  visible  market  includes  the  coal  needed  by  the  navy,  now 
about  150,000  tons  annually,  which  will  probably  increase  when 
the  Panama  canal  is  completed,  the  coal  used  for  coke  and  for 
blacksmithing,  and  a  small  consumption  of  anthracite.  The  con- 
sumption of  coke  along  the  Pacific  seaboard  is  100,000  to  200,000 
tons  annually.  It  is  therefore  probably  safe  to  count  on  a  market 
for  500,000  tons  of  Alaska's  ^high-grade  coal,  with  the  probability 

iparker,  E.  \V.,  The  Production  of  coal  in  1910:  Adv.  chapter  from  Min.  Res. 
of  United   States,  calendar  year,   1910,  p.  88. 

^Alaska  coal  ami  its  utilization:  Bull.  U.  S.  Geol.  Survey  No.  418,  1910. 


298         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

that  when  this  is  produced  local  industries  will  be  developed  so 
as  to  increase  the  demand. 

The  question  naturally  arises  why,  if  the  actual  demand  for 
Alaska  coal  is  so  small,  there  should  be  such  a  clamor  among  the 
residents  of  the  territory  for  the  opening  of  the  fields.  In  reply  to 
this  it  should  be  noted  that  up  to  the  present  time  only  the  larger 
consumers  of  fuel  in  Alaska  .have  or  are  preparing  to  use  Cali- 
fornia oils.  These  include  the  two  longest  railroads,  the  largest 
mines,  and  many  of  the  steamers.  The  small  consumer  is  still 
using  a  far  inferior  grade  of  coal  to  that  found  at  his  own  door 
at  a  cost  of  $8  to  $20  a  ton.  This  high  cost  of  fuel  has  seriously 
retarded  many  small  mining  enterprises. 

A  more  important  reason,  in  the  opinion  of  the  average 
Alaskan,  for  the  opening  of  the  coal  field  is  that  he  believes  such 
action  will  result  in  the  completion  of  railroads  begun  or  pro j acted. 
He  believes  that  the  coal  fields  will  furnish  a  part  of  the  tonnage 
which  will  justify  railway  construction.  However  this  may  be, 
Alaska's  greatest  need  today  is  railways.  Without  these,  only 
the  richest  gold  deposits  can  be  mined,  and  there  is  little  to  attract 
a  permanent  population. 

Future. 

I  have  spoken  only  of  the  immediate  future  of  the  Alaska  coal. 
It  is  certain  that,  unless  we  look  a  long  distance  ahead,  the  proba- 
bility of  an  extensive  mining  industry  is  not  very  great.  However, 
with  the  rapidly  increasing  population  along  the  Pacific  seaboard, 
the  demand  for  high-grade  coals  is  certain  to  increase.  We  can 
look  forward  with  confidence  to  the  establishment  of  an  iron  smelt- 
ing industry  on  the  west  coast  of  the  continent  which  will  supply 
the  local  needs.  This  will  make  a  demand  for  coking  coal,  and 
Alaska  is  the  only  source  of  supply.  We  also  know  that  eventually 
California's  oil  production  must  decrease,  and  when  that  time 
comes  Alaska  coal  will  be  needed  to  supply  the  demand  for  mineral 
fuel  along  the  Pacific  seaboard. 

Centers  of  commerce  and  industry  have  been  moving  west- 
ward almost  since  the  beginning  of  the  Christian  era.  As  the  At- 
lantic superseded  the  Pacific  as  the  great  highway  of  nations,  so 
now  the  Pacific,  in  turn,  bids  fair  before  long  to  rival  the  Atlantic. 
Concomitant  with  this  will  be  the  establishment  of  industries  along 
the  coast  line.  Therefore,  while  we  may  not  expect  a  rapid  develop- 
ment of  a  coal-mining  industry  in  Alaska,  yet  of  its  future  im- 
portance there  can  be  no  question. 


The  Alaskan  Question. 

BY  GEORGE  E.  BALDWIN, 
VALDEZ,  ALASKA. 

I  wish  at  the  beginning  of  my  remarks  to  extend  to  the  Ameri- 
can Mining  Congress,  in  behalf  of  the  people  of  Alaska,  our  pro- 
found and  sincere  thanks. 

It  seems  that  of  late  years  scarcely  any  sort  of  a  national 
meeting  could  be  held,  no  matter  for  what  purpose  convened,  or  by 
whom  constituted,  without  passing  some  sort  of  resolutions  for  our 
benefit,  and  considering  the  Niagara  of  misinformation  and  the 
deluge  of  lies  about  Alaska  with  which  the  country  has  been  flooded 
by  the  muckraking  writers  for  a  certain  class  of  publications,  it  is 
not  surprising  that  certain  ignorant,  but  well-meaning  people,  should 
make  mistakes. 

As  the  residents  of  Alaska  depend  almost  entirely  for  a  live- 
lihood upon  mining  and  its  subsidiary  industries,  it  is  a  reasonable 
presumption  that  the  members  of  the  American  Mining  Congress 
should  best  appreciate  the  difficulties  .under  which  we  labor,  and 
be  most  competent  to  suggest  remedies.  The  resolutions  concern- 
ing our  territory  passed  at  your  last  meeting  reminded  us  that  one 
great  organization  at  least  was  our  friend. 

What  are  the  needs  of  Alaska?  Considering  the  fact  that  a 
country  of  great  natural  and  undeveloped  resources  has  remained 
stationary  in  population  for  ten  years,  if  not  actually  decreasing, 
its  trade  and  commerce  the  same,  the  question  is  certainly  one  to 
demand  thoughtful  study. 

The  Secretary  of  the  Interior  recently  visited  Alaska  and  was 
presented  with  a  memorial  by  the  citizens  of  Valdez  in  part  as 
follows : 

Primarily  Alaska  demands  and  needs  the  same  right  of  untram- 
meled  development  that  has  been  accorded  to  every  other  territory 
of  the  United  States  pioneered  by  Americans.  Alaskans  ask  that 
American  citizens  and  all  other  industrious  men  be  permitted  to.  create 
property  for  themselves  out  of  the  limitless  resources  of  this  vast 
territory  unhampered  by  bureaucratic  dictation  and  interference.  The. 
people  of  Alaska  are  a  unit  in  opposition  to  federal  landlordism  over 
its  mines,  forests  and  water  power. 

The  doctrine  that  the  Federal  government  five  thousand  miles 
away  knows  better  what  is  good  for  Alaska  than  the  pioneers  who  have 
spent  years  within  its  boundaries  is  a  political  heresy  that  cannot  long 
stand  before  the  enlightened  sense  of  justice  which  characterizes  the 
American  people.  If  left  to  herself  Alaska  would  enact  laws  for  her 
government  and  development  with  the  same  intelligence  and  regard  for 


300        PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

natural  right  that  was  shown  by  the  early  immigrants  into  the  Pacific 
and  mountain  states,  of  whom  Justice  Field  said  in  a  judicial  opinion: 

"Wherever  they  went  they  carried  with  them  that  love  of  order 
and  system  and  of  fair  dealing  which  are  the  prominent  characteristics 
of  our  people." 

And  the  senator  who  introduced  the  first  mining  law  into  Con- 
gress in  1866,  which  was  merely  a  federal  recognition  of  miner's  law, 
said  that  the  miner  had  given  the  honest  toil  of  his  life  to  discover 
wealth,  which  when  found  was  protected  by  no  higher  law  than  that 
enacted  by  himself,  under  the  implied  sanction  of  a  just  and  generous 
government. 

This  just  and  generous  government  has  been  succeeded  by  one 
that  seeks  to  create  a  distant  landlordism  over  Alaska.  This  policy,  if 
continued,  will  forever  stunt  the  development  of  the  territory.  Men 
born  under  republican  institutions  will  not  long  remain  where  they 
have  to  get  permission  of  a  government  agent  to  transact  business. 
The  garroting  of  Alaska  by  the  last  two  national  administrations  has 
stopped  its  growth,  decreased  its  population  and  financially  ruined 
many  men  who  had  not  anticipated  that  the  great  national  government 
would  make  Alaska  the  dumping  ground  of  eastern  political  fads. 

And  upon  that  subject  I  wish  to  add  that  in  my  opinion  a  form 
of  local  self-government  at  least  as  liberal  as  has  ever  been  accorded 
the  pioneers  of  any  territory  is  absolutely  necessary  to  our  proper 
and  orderly  development.  We  will  be  satisfied  with  no  make-shift, 
no  half  way  measure ;  it  is  our  right  as  Americans,  and  it  is  rights 
we  demand,  and  not  permits  and  privileges  that  we  sue  for.  So 
much  for  the  political  side  of  Alaska's  needs. 

Alaska  Has  Paid  Debt  to  Nation. 

It  has  been  urged  by  certain  people  utterly  unacquainted  with 
the  risks  and  hardships  of  pioneering,  and  who  have  never  wan- 
dered far  from  their  own  firesides,  that  Alaska  was  bought  and  paid 
for  out  of  the  taxes  paid  by  the  American  people  and  they  are 
entitled  to  get  something  out  of  it.  Our  answer  is  that  they  have 
gotten  something  out  of  it  and  are  getting  something  out  of  it.  The 
nearly  two  hundred  million  of  Alaska  gold  which  has  been  poured 
into  the  channels  of  trade  of  this  nation,  stimulating  industry  in 
all  its  branches,  has  more  than  paid  any  debt  Alaska  owes  the 
Nation.  During  the  panic  of  1907  our  bankers  were  begging  the 
money  power  of  Europe  for  a  loan  of  twenty  million  in  gold. 

Alaska  that  year  produced  nearly  that  amount  of  the  yellow 
metal,  "all  of  which  went  to  the  United  States,  not  loaned,  but  to 
purchase  commodities  from  almost  every  state  in  the  Union,  for  up 
there  we  must  import  almost  everything,  except  the  air  we  breathe 
and  the  water  we  drink — and  I  suppose  if  the  ultra-conservation- 
ists had  their  way  \ye  would  pay  a  direct  royalty  on  these. 

Any  attempt  to  impose  upon  the  people  and  resources  of 
Alaska  any  burden  not  borne  by  the  people  and  resources  of  the 


THE    ALASKAN    QUESTION  301 

balance  of  the  country  will  fail;  first,  because  it  is  unjust;  second, 
because  it  is  economically  wrong. 

It  seems  to  me  in  my  boyhood  days  I  read  a  story  of  fools  who 
killed  a  goose  that  was  laying  golden  eggs. 

The  mining  laws  of  the  United  States,  as  they  stand  today,  have 
stood  the  test  of  nearly  forty  years.  These  laws  have  been  inter- 
preted by  the  courts  at  an  expense  to  the  miners  of  millions  of 
dollars.  All  important  points  have  been  settled  and  to  enact  a  new 
set  of  laws  at  this  late  date,  with  all  this  to  be  gone  over  at  the 
expense  of  the  mining  industry  of  Alaska,  which  is  practically  all 
on  the  public  lands,  would  impose  on  that  industry  a  burden  it 
could  not  well  bear. 

Again,  we  demand  with  reason,  we  think,  the  same  laws  as 
apply  to  the  remainder  of  our  country.  One  might  think  to  hear 
some  people  talk  that  the  present  residents  of  Alaska  had 
established  a  close  corporation  and  were  trying  to  keep  out  the 
remainder  of  the  people  from  participating  in  the  possible  profits 
of  its  development,  while  as  a  matter  of  fact  we  are  crying  for 
miners,  investors,  prospectors  and  industrious  thrifty  men  generally, 
to  come  ancT  take  up  their  residence  with  us. 

The  town  I  live  in  is  located  in  a  forest  reserve.  Last  summer 
I  was  doing  a  little  building  and  purchased  lumber  from  Puget 
Sound,  fourteen  hundred  miles  away,  which,  quality  considered, 
was  cheaper  than  could  be  produced  by  the  local  mills  after  they 
had  paid  the  royalties  and  complied  with  the  regulations  of  the 
forest  service.  If  our  gold  mines  are  to  be  put  on  a  leasing  basis 
and  managed  the  same  as  our  forests  I  have  no  doubt  we  shall  be 
able  to  extract  gold  from  sea  water  cheaper  than  from  the  rocks 
and  gravels  of  Alaska. 

The  problem  of  conservation  has  become  so  confused  with  the 
problems  of  Alaska  that  a  few  words  upon  this  subject  may  not  be 
amiss.  A  short  magazine  article  published  recently  upon  political 
subjects  contained  the  word  "conservation"  no  less  than  twenty-six 
times. 

Now  what  is  conservation? 

How  Some  Alaskans  Regard  Conservation. 

From  our  standpoint  conservation  to  date  is  an  attempt  to 
gather  all  the  public  lands  of  our  territory  as  an  estate,  its  forests, 
its  mines,  its  water  power,  its  wharf  sites,  to  be  managed  by  a  vast 
horde,  a  devastating  host  of  government  underlings  and  worked  by 
our  citizens  as-  tenants,  licensees  and  lessees ;  these  underlings  to  be 
ru^ed  by  a  retinue  of  officials  stationed  at  Washington,  thousands 


302        PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

of  mile.-  away.  All  of  ^hese  locusts  of  officialdom  to  consider  them- 
selves the  people's  masters  and  not  their  servantsi  Why  this  reti- 
nue stationed  at  Washington  ?  So  they  can  be  in  closer  touch  with 
questions  to  be  decided?  No,  so  they  can  be  promptly  on  the 
ground  to  lobby  for  more  appropriations  to  hire  more  officials  ro 
lobby  for  more  appropriations,  ad  infinitum.  And  they  will  need 
these  appropriations,  for  such  a  system  has  never  in  past  history 
paid  its  wp.y  and  never  will. 

For  generations  we  have  been  decrying  the  heartless  greed  of 
Irish  landlords,  yet  here  is  a  system  of  landlordism  that  out-Irishes 
the  most  Irish  landlord  that  ever  disgraced  the  human  race  by  his 
rapacity.  A  landlord  who  refuses  to  develop  his  property,  refuses 
to  let  anyone  else  develop  it  except  under  the  most  onerous  condi- 
tions and  refuses  to  pay  one  cent  of  taxes  to  be  expended  by  local 
officials  for  local  needs.  The  manifest  injustice  of  all  this  needs 
no  comment. 

The  idea  that  an  owner  will  not  more  efficiently  conserve  re- 
sources than  a  government  official  is  too  silly  to  merit  discussion. 

I,  in  common  with  all  other  Alaskans,  have  nothing  but  words 
of  commendation  for  that  great  body  of  scientific  men  who  have 
represented  the  various  branches  of  the  Government  service  in 
Alaska. 

There  is  another  way  to  look  ^t  conservation: 

It  is  a  foolish  attempt  on  the  part  of  this  generation  to  do  the 
thinking  for  generations  yet  to  be.  What  can  be  more  ridiculous? 
You  have  probably  heard  the  story  told  by  Congressman  Humphrey 
of  Washington  of  the  old  woman  who  went  into  hysterics  after  she 
had  concluded  that  some  epidemic  was  going  to  kill  all  the  geese  in 
the  world,  that  the  people  would  forget  how  to  write  because  there 
would  be  no  quills  to  make  pens  with.  It  is  to  be  presumed  that  had 
conservation  been  a  fad  in  those  days,  all  the  remaining  public  land 
would  have  been  promptly  declared  a  goose  reserve. 

Less  than  a  century  ago,  well-meaning  men  were  making  dole- 
ful prophecies  about  the  impending  extinction  of  the  sperm  whale, 
and  on  that  account  the  world  would  soon  be  in  darkness  from  sun- 
down until  sun-up.  What  a  pity  some  power  strong  enough  did 
not  then  declare  the  seven  seas  a  whale  reserve. 

The  idea  of  thinking  for  future  generations  has  been  tried. 
About  one  hundred  years  ago,  naval  reserves  of  live-oak  timber  in 
the  southern  states  were  created  to  provide  the  material  to  build 
the  battleships  of  the  future.  After  these  acres  had  been  held  for 
generations  in  unproductive  idleness  they  were  recently  restored  to 


THE    ALASKAN    QUESTION  303 

the  use  of  man  and  if  an  individual  went  to  the  Navy  Department 
tomorrow  to  sell  live-oak  for  building  battleships,  he  would  be 
considered  a  candidate  for  the  lunatic  asylum. 

The  doctrine  of  radical  conservation,  as  applied  to  coal,  is  an 
absolutely  hopeless  one,  for  no  matter  how  little  or  how  much  is 
used  each  year,  it  will  finally  all  be  gone. 

Right  Minded  Citizen  Abhors.  Waste. 

Every  right  minded  civilized  man  abhors  waste,  particularly  of 
something  that  can  never  be  replaced;  but  the  doctrine  that  this 
is  the  last  generation  of  inventors  and  scientists  that  will  live  and 
that  the  many  forces  of  nature  now  going  to  waste  compared  to 
which  all  the  coal  in  the  world  is  as  tallow  dip  to  a  thousand  arc 
lights,  that  these  sources  of  power  will  never  be  harnessed  by  man, 
and  that  the  present  generation  must  be  starved  as  we  Alaskans 
are  being  starved,  well — words  fail  me  when  I  attempt  to  express 
my  opinion  of  such  criminal  foolishness. 

These  lamenting  Jeremiahs  who  moan  over  the  exhaustion  of 
our  natural  resources  pay  all  their  attention  to  that  section  of  the 
country  where  the  population  is  sparse,  while  the  resources  in  the 
section  of  the  country  where  the  population  is  dense  are  being  used 
as  circumstances  demand  without  any  of  their  valuable  advice  and 
assistance. 

One  of  the  problems  of  our  nation  is  to  restrict  the  people  of 
our  country  from  congregating  in  the  centers  of  population;  yet 
these  radical  conservationists  demand  the  continuance  of  and  ex- 
tension of,  a  system  that  is  depopulating,  our  territory,  in  which  at 
present  there  is  only  one  human  being,  man,  woman,  child,  Siwash 
squaw  and  pappoose  for  every  seven  thousand,  seven  hundred 
acres. 

Alaska  is  being  literally  reserved  to  death.  We  have  forest 
reserves,  military  reserves  one  of  them  one  hundred  miles  in  di- 
ameter, coal  reserves,  fish  reserves,  naval  reserves,  missionary  re- 
serves, church  reserves,  school  reserves,  seal  reserves,  bird  reserves 
and  I  suppose  by  this  time,  bug  reserves  and  cranks  crying  for  more 
reserves. 

Soon  there  will  be  nothing  for  us  sour-dough  Alaskans  to  do 
but  act  as  cooks  and  packers  for  me  lud,  the  Eastern  faddist,  who 
comes  out  to  see  what  has  been  reserved  at  his  behest,  and  then  we 
will  be  disappointed,  for  not  one  out  of  a  hundred  of  these  fanatics 
will  ever  leave  the  deck  of  the  steamer.  In  this  connection  I  wish 
to  state  that  the  self-styled  leader  of  the  conservation  movement 
has  recently  visited  Alaska.  .  This  great  rrmsher,  this  great  trail 


304        PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

blazer — who  has  penetrated  the  impenetrable  fastnesses  of  the 
mountains,  who  has  communed  with  Nature,  knows  the  trees  be- 
cause when  all  the  world  but  he  and  they  were  asleep,  he  purloined 
their  bark  lark  secrets.  This  marvel  of  fortitude  after,  traveling 
4,000  miles  on  Pullman  cars  and  palatial  steamships  got  within  15 
miles  of  the  Matanuska  coal  fields,  about  which  he  and  his  paid 
assassins  of  character  have  been  ranting,  on  a  trail  that  has  been 
traveled  for  years  by  men,  women,  children  and  cripples — still  it 
was  too  tough  for  him.  He  turned  around  and  came  back  and 
spent  a  large  part  of  his  time  in  Alaska  around  hotel  lobbies  trying 
to  justify  his  actions  before  a  hostile  and  outraged  people.  If  the 
pioneers  of  Alaska  had  been  made  of  no  sterner  stuff  than  he,  the 
Matanuska  coal  fields  would  never  have  been  discovered.  Less 
than  two  hundredths  of  one  per  cent  of  the  land  of  Alaska  is  in 
private  ownership,  more  than  ninety-nine  and  ninety-eight  one  hun- 
dredths are  still  in  the  public  domain,  and  I  ask  you,  in  all  candor, 
do  you  blame  us  for  using  rather  strong  language  when  our  develop- 
ment is  retarded  by  executive  orders  issued  at  the  behest  of  fad- 
dists who  cry  that  Alaska  is  being  gobbled  up. 

Alaskan  Coal  Question. 

In  regard  to  the  so-called  Alaskan  coal  question,  the  prac- 
tically unanimous  expressions  of  the  people  of  our  section  are 
voiced  in  the  following  extract  from  the  memorial  to  the  Secretary 
of  the  Interior  previously  referred  to: 

"Alaskans  recognize  that  the  Alaska  coal  problem  is  hopelessly 
perplexing,  chiefly  because  of  the  vast  discharge  of  wholesale  mis-in- 
formation. Alaskans  know  that  there  is  no  danger  of  an  Alaska  coal 
monopoly.  The  coal  fields  are  widely  scattered  and  of  far  less  value 
than  advertised  in  hysterical  print.  Alaskans  generally  believe  that  the 
coal  lands  should  be  disposed  of  under  existing  laws  for  development 
by  private  enterprises,  relying  upon  the  government  to  deal  with  mo- 
nopoly should  it  be  threatened.  Recognizing,  however,  that  in  the 
present  exaltation  of  the  Eastern  mind  through  the  epidemic  of  con- 
servation, this  is  Impossible,  many  Alaskans  are  inclined  to  urge  that 
the  government  itself  undertake  the  operation  of  the  coal  mines.  If 
this  could  be  done  successfully  by  a  competent  official  board,  it  would 
vindicate  the  theories  of  those  who  believe  that  the  government  should 
have  absolute  control  of  its  remaining  fuel  supply.  If  a  capable  Gov- 
ernment commission,  with  full  power  to  manage  business  under 
regulated  statutes  should  be  unable  to  accomplish  satisfactory  results, 
the  project  could  be  abandoned  after  a  few  years. 

"It  is  needless  to  repeat  arguments  often  iterated  to  emphasize 
the  folly  of  continued  bottling  up  of  Alaska  coal.  Alaska  residents  are 
paying  exorbitant  prices  for  fuel  and  the  government  is  paying  un- 
necessarily high  prices  for  coal  transported  from  the  East  for  naval  and 
other  Federal  uses  on  the  Pacific  coast,  while  political  agitators  wrangle 
over  the  unknown  possibilities  of  Alaska  coal  fields. 

"The  leasing  system  is  unanimously  opposed  in  Alaska,  because  it 
is  un-American,  and  further,  because  it  would  intensify  -rather  than  di- 
minish, the  chances,  of  monopoly.  None  but  wealthy  corporations 


THE    ALASKAN    QUESTION  305 

could  do  anything  with  a  lease  and  they  would  demand  concessions 
unlikely  to  be  granted,  and  which,  if  granted,  would  license  monopoly. 
The  leasing  dream  would  mean  indefinite  postponement  of  coal  mining 
in  Alaska." 

Large  numbers  of  people  in  the  states  advocate  the  leasing  of 
the  Alaska  coalfields  without  a  second  thought  upon  the  matter.  It 
is  not  generally  known  that  the  leasing  of  mineral  lands  in  the 
United  States  has  been  tried,  proved  a  disastrous  failure  and  was 
condemned  by  two  Presidents  of  the  Nation  in  messages  to  Con- 
gress. 

A  high  government  official  has  recently  returned  from  Alaska 
advocating  the  leasing  of  the  coal  lands  there  and  citing  the  case 
of  British  Columbia  as  an  example  of  where  the  leasing  system 
works  well.  This  is  not  denied,  but  the  cases  are  vastly  different. 
Does  an  applicant  for  a  lease  in  British  Columbia  have  to  enter 
into  negotiations  with  officials  in  London  acting  under  laws  passed 
by  the  British  Parliament?  No!  Does  he  even  have  to  go  to 
Ottawa?  No.  At  Victoria  the  laws  are  passed  by  local  people, 
the  negotiations  entered  into  and  consummated  all  right  at  home. 

Alaskan  Committee  Report. 

I  wish  at  this  point  to  %quote  from  the  report  of  your  committee 
on  Alaska  affairs  made  to  this  session  of  The  American  Mining 
Congress.  I  very  much  regret  that  time  does  not  allow  the  reading 
of  this  report  in  full.  This  report  represents  the  work  of  many 
months  of  painstaking  labor  on  the  part  of  that  committee,  but  it 
will  be  published  with  the  records  of  this  session.  It  being  prob- 
able that  some  of  you  at  least  will  not  read  this  report,  I  take  the 
liberty  of  quoting  from  it  is  follows: 

"We  are  also  opposed  to  making  of  Alaska  the  experiment  station 
for  new  ideas.  We  are  unable  to  find  where  the  leasing  system  has 
ever  been  successful  in  the  operation  of  coal  fields  under  any  govern- 
ment. Leasing  is  perhaps  successful  to  some  extent  in  the  coal  mines 
of  Pennsylvania,  where  a  market  is  near  at  hand  and  transportation  is 
well  provided,  frequently  by  competing  lines,  and  the  leases  are  from 
individuals.  It  is  not  a  government  leasing  system. 

"It  has  been  said  that  the  leasing  system  works  well  in  British 
Columbia,  Yukon  Territory,  and  in  Australia  and  New  Zealand.  We 
can  only  repeat  the  statement  that  a  half-truth  is  frequently  the  most 
dangerous  and  misleading  falsehood.  The  system  in  British  Columbia 
is  in  no  sense  a  leasing  system  as  is  proposed  in  the  United  States.  The 
lessee  in  British  Columbia  may  obtain  a  lease  of  sixty-four  hundred 
acres  for  five  years,  with  a  renewal  for.  three  years,  but  is. privileged  at 
any  time  during  the  lease,  or  within  three  months  thereafter,  to  pur- 
chase the  lands  at  $20  per  acre.  It  is  a  significant  fajct,  too,  that  no 
mines  are  operated  in  British  Columbia  under  the  leasing  system.  All 
are  operating  upon  granted  lands.  There  is  a  law  for  leasing  the  coal 
lands  in  the  Yukon  Territory.  The  only  attempts  ever  made  to  operate 
under  that  law  resulted  in  failures.  There  is  not  a  single  coal  mine 
operated  in  the  Yukon  Territory  upon  a  lease  from  the  government.  In 
a  similar  manner  the  laws  of  Australia  and  New  Zealand  provide  for 


306        PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

private  ownership  at  the  option  of  the  lessee.  It  is  reported  that  much 
coal  is  mined  there  under  a  leasing  system,  but  that  is  because  the 
operators  do  not  find  it  necessary  to  exercise  the  option  given  them  to 
purchase  the  land.  They  are  given  that  option,  however,  and  are  thus 
afforded  the  security  of  private  ownership  whenever  they  see  fit  to 
exercise  the  privilege.  No  such  system  has  been  proposed  for  Alaska. 
None  of  the  leasing  bills  introduced  in  Congress  permit  the  lessee 
ever  to  acquire  title  to  the  land.  The  Robinson  bill  now  pending  before 
Congress  even  provides  for  only  a  portion  of  the  royalty  upon  coal 
mines  in  Alaska  to  be  expended  in  the  territory,  and  the  balance  is  to  be 
turned  into  the  treasury  of  the  United  States.  It  is  a  rank  injustice  to 
compel  the  residents  of  Alaska  to  pay  a  royalty  into  the  Treasury  of  the 
United  States  upon  the  coal  they  consume.  Why  not  a  similar  royalty 
from  the  consumers  of  coal  elsewhere?  The  consumers  of  Pennsyl- 
vania coal  would  object  to  paying  such  a  royalty  to  the  Federal  Gov- 
ernment, and  the  consumers  in  Alaska  are  entitled  to  urge  the  same 
objections. 

"Poor  old  Alaska  has  surely  had  quite  enough  of  the  leasing  sys- 
tem. It  was  leased  by  Russia  from  1799  until  1867  to  the  Russian- 
American  Company.  That  company  was  the  absolute  lord  and  master, 
and  its  leasehold  sovereignty  absolutely  prevented  development.  For- 
tunately nobody  was  lured  there  under  false  premises.  Only  those 
went  there  who  did  so  for  the  Russian-American  Company.  A  leasing 
system  was  not  inflicted  upon  honest,  hardy  pioneers  as  is  now  proposed 
by  the  American  government.  Fortunately,  for  the  United  States, 
Alaska  was  not  colonized  or  settled  by  the  Russians.  Their  leasing  sys- 
tem prevented  it.  Otherwise  the  Russian  people  would  have  so  well 
developed  Alaska  by  1867  that  the  United  States  could  not  have  bought 
it  for  two  cents  an  acre,  with  its  wonderful  fisheries  and  a  fur  seal  herd  of 
6,000,000  thrown  into  the  bargain.  The  first  thing  we  did,  however,  was 
to  lease  that  seal  herd  to  a  company  which  in  forty  years  made  a  net 
profit  of  $5,738,000  and  depleted  the  seal  to  about  75,000.  In  the  mean- 
time, the  United  States  Government  spent  more  money  in  patroling 
the  seal  islands  than  it  obtained  from  royalties  on  the  lease,  and  Alaska 
got  absolutely  nothing,  not  a  cent  in  taxation,  not  a  light-house,  not  a 
school  house,  not  as  much  as  a  flag  pole.  Now,  the  United  States 
Government  has  gone  into  the  sealing  business  itself,  and  has  already 
begun  to  make  a  profit.  But  this  kind  of  talk  may  lead  us  to  advocate 
the  building  of  railroads  in  Alaska  and  the  operation  of  coal  mines  there 
by  the  Government." 

Our  opposition  to  the  leasing  system  is  based  upon  another, 
and,  we  believe,  a  higher  principle.  It  places  the  control  of  our 
resources  in  the  hands  of  a  power  five  thousand  miles  away, — out 
of  touch,  out  of  sympathy,  and  indifferent  to  local  needs  and  re- 
quirements. It  is  a  return  to  the  system  of  land  tenures  that  ob- 
tained in  feudal  days,  where  the  landlord  was  both  landlord,  law- 
giver and  law-interpreter.  It  has  been  argued  that  a  large  number 
of  coal  mines  of  the  United  States  are  operated  on  a  leasing  basis — 
but  these  leases  are  between  man  and  man,  both  of  them  standing 
equal  before  the  law  and  having  to  submit  any  differences  that  may 
arise  between  them  to  a  court  before  whom  they  stand  as  equals. 
This  system  of  governmental  leasing  leaves  the  question  of  any 
differences  to  be  decided  absolutely  in  the  hands  of  the  leasor. 
There  is  still  another  objection  in  the  fact  that  this  system  will  in 
all  probability  not  stop  with  the  governmental  leasing  of  coal  mines. 


THE    ALASKAN    QUESTION  307 

We  have  seen  the  forest  service  organized  ostensibly  for  the  pur- 
pose of  conserving  the  forests  gradually,  stealthily,  insidiously,  and 
in  many  cases  without  a  shadow  of  law  to  back  their  actions — ex- 
tend their  fields  of  operations.  We  have  seen  them  assume  control 
of  our  water  power.  We  have  seen  them  grab  our  wharf  sites.  We 
have  seen  them  meddle  with  the  mines  included  in  the  forest  re- 
serves to  the  great  detriment  of  that  industry.  We  deny  that  a 
people  can  be  considered  a  free  people  who  live  under  a  system  in 
which  the  owner  of  the  land  is  both  the  landlord  and  the  law. 

Any  number  of  schemes  that  are  probably  practical  and  work- 
able ones  in  such  small  compact  countries  as  Switzerland  or  New 
Zealand  are  absolutely  unworkable  in  a  country  as  vast  as  ours. 

The  securing  of  title  to  a  few  acres  of  land  in  Alaska  involves 
almost  endless  correspondence  with  Washington,  the  unwinding  of 
miles  of  red  tape  and  generally  years  of  delay;  and  the  matter  of 
issuing  patents  to  government  lands  is  something  in  which  our  of- 
ficials have  the  experience  of  over  a  century  to  guide  them.  To  in- 
troduce some  new  system  now  would,  as  the  Valdez  memorial 
states,  "mean  the  indefinite  postponement  of  coal  mining  in  Alaska." 
Abolition  of  Forest  Reserves  Urged. 

One  of  Alaska's  needs  is  the  immediate  abolition  of  forest  re- 
serves. The  recent  and  present  governors  of  the  territory  have  in 
their  reports  condemned  them.  I  wish  to  speak  for  a  moment,  upon 
the  Chugach  reserve  in  which  I  live.  This  reserve  covers  thou- 
sands of  square  miles  along  the  southern  coast,  more  than  ninety 
per  cent  of  which  is  utterly  destitute  of  timber,  being  barren  slopes, 
glaciers  and  mountains  above  timber  line.  Less  than  ten  per  cent 
is  covered  with  a  scattering  growth  of  spruce,  hemlock  and  cotton- 
wood  of  inferior  quality,  practically  all  mature  and  largely  super- 
mature.  Not  a  foot  of  this  timber  will  ever  be  exported.  In  fact, 
a  large  part  of  the  lumber  used  within  the  limits  of  this  reserve 
is  shipped  from  Puget  Sound.  It  is  only  useful  for  local  needs,  and 
should  be  used  by  our  people  without  undue  restriction. 

Forest  reserves  are  supposed  to  be  created  to  provide  timber 
for  future  generations,  to  attract  rainfalls,  to  regulate  stream  flow, 
to  prevent  forest  fires  and  provide  government  revenue. 

Let  us  take  up  these  propositions  in  turn. 

First.  What  is  the  use  of  preserving  timber  that  is  falling 
down  and  rotting  of  old  age  for  future  generations  ? 

Second.  As  to  rain  fall,  the  area  embraced  within  the  limits 
of  this  forest  reserve  receives  a  rain  fall  of  from  seventy  to  one 
hundred  and  twenty  inches  per  annum.  As  over  ninety  per  cent  of 


308        PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

this  reserve  is  destitute  of  timber  and  the  treeless  Aleutian  islands 
to  the  west  of  us  receive  more  rains  than  we  do,  the  idea  that  the 
cutting  of  the  timber  needed  by  our  people  will  have  any  effect 
upon  rain  fall  is  utterly  absurd. 

Third.  As  to  stream  flow,  our  streams  largely  have  their 
sources  in  the  everlasting  glaciers,  and  would  flow  bank  full  for 
centuries  without  a  drop  of  precipitation. 

Fourth.  As  to  forest  fires,  there  never  has  been  a  forest  fire 
in  this  reserve,  and  never  will  be,  soaked  with  rain  in  summer, 
and  covered  with  snow  in  winter. 

Fifth.  As  to  government  revenue,  it  has  cost  the  Government 
two  dollars  for  every  one  it*  has  collected  so  far,  besides  imposing  a 
*ost  of  thousands  of  dollars  upon  our  citizens  in  obtaining  permits. 

We  defy  the  forest  service  to  show  one  single  benefit  it  has 
conferred  upon  the  people  living  in  this  reserve,  upon  the  people 
who  will  live  in  it  in  the  future,  or  upon  the  people  of  the  United 
States  generally. 

In  conclusion,  I  wish  to  state  that  in  my  opinion  there  is  no 
Alaskan  question  any  more  than  there  was  a  Montana  question  or 
a  Colorado  question  fifty  years  ago.  All  we  wish  and  all  we  ask  is 
the  same  rights  as  have  been  accorded  the  pioneers  of  other  terri- 
tories in  their  primitive  struggle  for  development. 


Wanted,    an    Informed    Public    Sentiment    to    Support    a    New 
Federal  Policy  Toward  Alaska. 

BY   HENRY    R.    HARRIMAN, 
SEATTLE,  WASH. 


The  American  Alining  Congress  is  the  best  friend  Alaska  has 
ever  had  and  God  knows  she  needs  friends.  But  that  we  may 
meet  on  the  level  of  absolute  frankness  I  confess  to  a  strong 
hesitation,  in  attempting  to  discuss  this  subject  even  with  you,  who 
as  a  body  are  undoubtedly  best  informed  as  to  her  merits  and 
most  kindly  disposed  to  her  welfare  and  success. 

As  Governor  Clark  of  Alaska  rightly  points  out  in  perhaps 
his  most  recent  interview,  the  fuel  question  is  the  vital  one  in 
Alaska.  Vital  in  the  basic  needs  of  that  extreme  climate.  Vital 
to  the  future  development  of  Alaska  as  a  territory  and  as  an  or- 
ganized community.  Vital  in  a  large  sense  to  the  commercial  needs 
of  the  whole  Pacific  coast.  Vital  to  the  pre-eminence — to  the 
safety  even — of  the  American  Navy  on  the  Pacific;  and  a  living 
issue  perhaps  not  the  least  that  in  its  righteous  solution  will,  in  no 
small  way,  determine  whether  the  land  policy  trend  of  this  Gov- 
ernment will  falter  or  will  continue  to  higher  levels. 

In  the  kaleidoscope  of  conflicting  and  bewildering  ideas  from 
what  angle  shall  we  study  this  subject? 

The  Guggenheims  in  Alaska. 

Shall  we  attack  the  Guggenheims?  This  is  a  very  populai 
method  of  approach — and  sometimes  retreat — and  requires  little 
courage.  No  white  plumed  knight  is  apt  to  pick  up  the  gage  of 
verbal  battle  in  support  of  that  somewhat  sordid  institution.  But 
suppose  we  should  entertain  you  with  a  narrative  of  the  sins  of 
the  Guggenheims,  and  some  of  their  peccadillos  have  not  as  yet 
appeared  in  print,  of  what  profit,  gentlemen,  would  it  be  in  this 
discussion  ? 

The  Guggenheims  exemplify  in  an  unusual  degree  that  which 
is  unlovely  and  uninspiring  in  corporate  greed,  blunder  and  grab. 
Incidents  such  as  the  "Controller  Bay  Case"  are  not  the  figments  of 
reportorial  imagination.  It  has  been  intimated  to  me  that  the 
Guggenheims  do  not  require  an  introduction  to  this  audience. 

But,  gentlemen,  there  is  something  more  important  and  vital 
than  the  sins  of  the  Guggenheims;  and  that  is  the  investment  .of 


310        PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

real  money  and  big  money  in  the  commercial  development  of 
Alaska. 

Not  chiefly  in  that  fascinating  and  speculative  development 
that  means  ultimate  and  early  exhaustion  of  placer  gold  fields. 
Not  in  those  other  forms  of  so-called  development  that  spell  large 
immediate  profits  and  speedy  destruction.  Not  chiefly  in  these. 
But  in  the  less  alluring,  entirely  permanent  and  deeply  essential 
business  of  railroad  building,  quartz  development,  and  industrial 
investment. 

Of  course  not  unselfishly.  But  their  railroad  in  a  successful 
effort  to  reach  their  one  mine  affords  transportation  to  scores  of 
other  prospects  and  properties  in  which  they  have  not  one  cent's 
worth  of  interest;  traverses  valleys  highly  suitable  for  agricul- 
ture, free  for  the  taking;  and  from  the  beginning  provides  a  mar- 
ket for  the  farmer  who  will  settle  there. 

Competent  railroad  men  who  have  studied  that  line  say  that 
unless  the  mine  is  robbed  this  railroad,  as  a  commercial  investment, 
will  not  be  attractive  for  several  years  to  come.  But  its  commer- 
cial importance  to  Alaska  cannot  be  over-estimated.  Bear  in  mind 
that  not  one  pound  of  freight  can  be  hauled  over  this,  or  any  other 
road  in  Alaska,  except  upon  a  tariff  first  approved  by  the  Honor- 
able Secretary  of  the  Interior;  and  that  for  the  past  several  years 
every  foot  of  right-of-way  granted  in  Alaska  by  stipulations,  prece- 
dent to  such  grant,  is  subject  to  a  very  intimate  control  by  the 
Secretary  of  the  Interior  both  before  and  after  construction. 

It  takes  courage  and  foresight  to  make  this  sort  of  investment 
in  Alaska,  and  this  is  the  only  sort  of  investment  that  will  build  the 
Territory  into  self-sustaining  statehood. 

I  have  always  been  classed  as  an  Independent  in  Alaska.  I 
have  no  reason  to  love  the  Guggenheims;  but  I  challenge  your 
broad  experience  and  your  fairness  when  I  say : 

That  the  man  or  men  with  a  million  dollars  to  invest  in 
Alaska — or  anywhere  on  the  globe — may  rightly  expect  to  pur- 
chase at  jobbers'  rates.  The  man  with  one  hundred  thousand  dol- 
lars will  surely  get  wholesale  rates;  while  the  man  with  one 
thousand  dollars  buys  at  retail. 

Some  day  we  will  learn  that  wholesale  attack  upon  profit 
in  business  is  not  an  assault  upon  special  privilege,  even  though, 
from  the  concentration  of  investment,  the  profit  bulks  large. 
Rather  should  the  "Spirit  of  '76"  be  ever  vigilant  that  no  monopoly 
of  route,  or  harbor,  be  permitted ;  and  the  spirit  of  fair  play  divorce 
herself  from  envv. 


NEW  FEDERAL  POLICY  TOWARD  ALASKA  WANTED    311 

For  any  man  or  group  of  men  who  have  the  courage  to  most 
largely  put  their  money  into  the  permnaent  mining  and  commer- 
cial development  of  the  Northland,  are  entitled  to  permanent  and 
substantial  rewards.  They  should  be  given  every  reasonable  en- 
"couragement  and  honest  inducement,  and  their  property  should  be 
made  secure  and  be  respected. 

Federal  Responsibility. 

The  chief  duty  in  this  respect  lies  at  the  door  of  the  Federal 
Government.  Titles  must  be  made  stable  and  there  must  be  an 
honest  and  prompt  fulfillment  by  this  Government  of  its  part  of  the 
bargain ;  so  that  it  may  again  become  a  proper  bulwark  of  strength, 
instead  of  a  synonym  of  delay  and  oppression. 

Let  it  be  unequivocally  announced  at  Washington  that  every 
encouragement  and  safeguard  will  be  given  to  lawful  enterprise; 
but  that  the  monopolization  of  harbors,  routes  or  resources  will 
not  for  one  moment  be  tolerated. 

Let  Washington  be  no  longer  like  the  mature  maiden  who  hesi- 
tated, vacillated  and  delayed  the  acceptance  of  the  long  overdue 
proposal  because  she  feared  she  might  become  the  mother  of  a 
son  who  in  manhood's  years  might  commit  some  crime  and  suffer 
the  penalty  of  the  law. 

And  to  those  of  us  whose  humbler  efforts  to  develop  the  North- 
land are  circumscribed  by  limited  personal  means ;  and  those  who 
have  no  opportunity  of  Alaskan  investment,  let  me  say:  "Be- 
ware of  that  antagonism  which  is  not  unmixed  with  envy;  and  is 
founded  not  a  little  on  fear." 

For  the  greatest  calamity  that  could  befall  Alaska  is  that  any 
large  group,  or  source  of  capital  should  be  so  harassed  by  the 
Administration,  and  so  exhausted  by  the  petty  -hostility  of  the 
people  at  large,  that  it  should  abandon  the  effort,  and  its  unfinished, 
wasted  and  unproductive  investment  stand  as  a  monument  of 
warning  to  the  business  world. 

Rest  assured  that  government-built  and  owned  railroads  are 
too  good  to  come  true,  nor  will  Alaska  be  developed  and  her  wealth 
shared  by  the  American  people  by  any  system  of  Government  de- 
velopment, or  by  Government  ownership  and  a  leasing  system. 
It  is  much  to  be  doubted  if  the  maximum  return  from  royalty 
leases  would  provide  with  lucrative  inspectorships  the  highly  eligible 
patriots  who  now  occupy  that  band-wagon. 

I  am  unquestionably  an  Independent ;  I  am  classed  as  anti- 
Guggenheim  ;  but  I  say,  as  I  have  always  said :  "Fight  for  a  square 
deal  and  the  open  door.  Keep  alive  the  'Spirit  of  '76,'  but  be  hon- 


312         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

est  and  broad-minded,  and  hope  and  strive  that  Mr.  Guggenheim 
and  every  citizen  may  have  one  hundred  cents  and  a  fair  profit  for 
every  dollar  he  or  they  put  into  Alaska!" 

The  refusal  of  this  Government  or  any  constituted  authority 
worthy  of  the  name  of  Government,  to  administer  existing  law  with 
the  force  and  effect  intended  by  the  Congress  simply  because  men 
might  be  tempted,  or  because  it  was  charged  by  non-resident 
officials  that  men  had  been  tempted  to  attempt  its  evasion  and  take 
advantage  of  its  generosity,  is  a  travesty  on  the  name  of  Govern- 
ment and  unthinkable  at  least  in  this  Republic. 

Against  such  a  policy,  measured  in  terms  of  courage,  the  old 
maid  just  described,  hesitating  over  her  first  proposal,  is  a  veritable 
Joan  of  Arc. 

Alaskan  Coal  a  Political  Issue. 

They  tell  you  that  the  Alaska  fuel  question  has  been  for  some 
time  a  political  issue.  There  is  some  little  truth  and  some  little 
reason  in  that  statement. 

In  a  notable  article  published  this  month  Mr.  Gifford  Pindhot 
frankly  admits  that  conservation  also  is  in  politics  to  stay.  He 
says:  "In  the  work  of  stopping  the  waste  of  our  natural  re- 
sources, the  master  quality  is  foresight.  Political  foresight  is  as 
necessary  to  prevent  the  failure  or  destruction  of  the  conservation 
program  as  practical  foresight  is  to  prevent  the  destruction  or 
monopoly  of  the  forests  or  the  coal  fields  of  Alaska.  It  is  there- 
fore not  only  natural  but  necessary  and  right  that  an  advocate  of 
conservation  should  look  ahead  in  politics." 

I  was  asked  by  a  little  group  of  congressmen  just  before  ad- 
journment, "Mr.  Harriman,  what  is  hurting  Alaska  today?  What 
is  the  trouble?"  "I  can  answer  you  in  four  words,"  I  replied,  "if 
you  will  promise  not  to  take  offense."  This  being  agreed  to,  I  gave 
th,em  the  answer.  "One-nine-one-two,"  and  there  was  silence  in 
heaven  for  the  space  of  half  an  hour. 

The  Alaskan  fuel  question  is  rightly  perhaps  in  politics  today. 
I  for  one  would  gladly  submit  this  or  any  other  question  to  the 
suffrage  of  the  American  people,  granted  first  and  always  that  the 
people  have  a  chance  to  weigh  the'  facts  before  voting,  and  that 
the  great  parties  do  not  take  sides  before  the  real  facts  and  merits 
are  known. 

It  is  unfortunate  that  a  man  of  great  abilities  and  a  pre- 
eminent opportunity  for  usefulness  should  have  wholly  committed 
himself  upon  this  question  in  the  academic  privacy  of  his  study  on 
the  unsupported  data  of  a  zealous  young  man  who  had  himself  in- 


NEW  FEDERAL  POLICY  TOWARD  ALASKA  WANTED    313 

vestigated  the  Alaskan  question  in  the  streets  and  byways  of 
Seattle  and  in  the  poorly  lighted  -document  room  of  the  modest 
land  office  at  Juneau. 

It  is  doubtless  unfortunate  that  that  young  man  and  his  equally 
zealous  and  ingenious  co-partner  had  never  been  within  five 
hundred  miles  of  the  Alaskan  coal  fields;  and  that  their  frank  ad- 
missions show  them  also  to  "be  cruelly  handicapped  by  a  virgin 
ignorance  of  all  practical  things  pertaining  to  mining. 

It  is  unfortunate  that  before  Mr.  Pinchot  enunciated  his 
policies  as  to  the  preservation  of  the  forests  in  the  coal  fields  of 
Alaska  that  he  did  not  have  the  benefit  of  a  conference  with  some 
one  who  had  actually  seen  these  primeval  forests,  as  he  would  have 
found  that  a  hundred  square  miles  of  these  coal  lands  are  shielded 
from  the  cruel  blast  by  less  standing  timber  than  makes  market- 
able many  a  section  of  timber  in  the  states  of  Washington  and 
Oregon. 

It  is  a  public  misfortune  that  in  his  recent  trip  to  Alaska  he 
spent  more  time  in  the  hotels  of  Cordova  and  in  the  defense  of  his 
pre-determined  policies  before  an  exasperated  and  perhaps  un- 
sympathetic audience  at  Cordova,  than  in  the  forest  and  coal  fieJds 
of  Katalla  eighty  miles  away. 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  he  did  not  borrow  an  axe  and  visit 
these  forests  which  he  has  conserved  from  the  ruthless  hands  of 
the  man  who  otherwise  might  have  built  a  log  cabin  or  warmed 
his  children  before  a  wood  fire.  It  is  regrettable  that  a  brief 
momentary  experience  of  the  exigencies  of  a  pioneer  life  did  not 
send  him  in  search  of  an  armful  of  firewood.  For  a  few  blows  of 
the  axe  and  an  hour  in  this  forest  reserve  would  have  shown  him 
that  the  trees  there  are  passing  their  prime  and  are  already  so 
dry  rotted  that  sometimes  only  one  tree  in  three  or  four  is  fit  for 
firewood. 

It  is  unfortunate  also  that  he  -did  not  learn  that  such  standing 
timber  there  as  might  still  serve  a  useful  purpose  possesses  but 
little  over  half  the  tensile  strength  of  States  timber,  and  is  of  rela- 
tively small  commercial  importance  in  the  future  of  the  coal  mining 
industry  in  Alaska. 

Burden   of  Complaint  "The  Forestry." 

The  members  of  your  Alaskan  committee  have  not  been  parti- 
san in  this  matter.  In  a  series  of  informal  conferences  had  with 
the  mining  men  in  various  quartz  mining  communities  I  pledge  you 
that  we  gave  no  intimation  of  the  personal  views  of  our  committee. 
We  simply  asked  them  to  state  freely  their  ideas,  and  make  any 


3i4      PROCEEDINGS  AMERICAN  MINING  CONGRESS 

suggestions  or  statements  which  might  be  of  interest  to  the  Mining 
Congress.  And  the  burden  of  their  complaint  was  "The  Forestry." 
Their  inability  to  use  timber  to  open  their  prospects  and  mines,  to 
use  any  waterpower,  and  the  successful  opposition  by  the  forestry 
to  the  patenting  of  quartz  claims  on  which  any  standing  timber  was 
reported. 

We  found  one  man,  and  one  man  only,  a  very  intelligent  and 
likable  gentleman,  who  mildly  took  up  the  cudgels  for  the  Pinchot 
policies.  He  avowed  that  "there  might  be  something  said  on  the 
other  side."  Later  we  inquired  what  his  business  was,  and  were 
enlightened  to  find  that  he  was  operating  a  little  power  water  plant. 
"Where  does  he  get  his  power?"  we  asked.  "Oh,"  they  said,  "he 
has  some  sort  of  a  lease  of  the  falls  back  of  town."  "From  whom?" 
we  asked,  mildly  curious.  "Why,  from  the  forestry  department," 
was  the  answer.  Can  you  see  the  picture  of  the  phonograph  and 
the  devoted  listener? 

It  is  unfortunate  that  men  of  standing,  native  ability  and 
sincerity,  such  as  Mr.  Pinchot,  must  approach  these  questions 
wholly  in  the  dark  as  to  the  facts  and  merits,  and  are .  forced  to 
lend  ear  to  those  disinterested  patriots  who  go  about  the  country  at 
their  own  expense,  and  furnish  interesting  reading  matter  at  rates 
attractive  to  both  reader  and  author. 

And  it  is  to  be  regretted  that  frail  mortals  that  we  are,  having 
once  publicly  committed  ourselves  to  an  attitude  or  policy  as  to  a 
given  state  of  facts,  we  are  prone  to  review  these  facts  or  visit  the 
section  under  discussion  in  a  sincere  and  wholly  unconscious  effort 
to  strengthen  our  position,  for  granted  that  the  earth  is  flat,  there 
is  much — even  in  Holy  Writ — to  support  the  contention. 

A  few  days  after  the  Controller  bay  story  "broke,"  as  the 
newspaper  men  say,  a  very  eminent  congressman,  whose  utterances 
on  that  subject  had  shed  light  upon  several  pages  of  the  Con- 
gressional Record,  sent  for  me  and  said :  "Harriman,  where  in  the 
deuce  is  Controller  bay?"  I  do  not  quote  him  with  exactness. 

That  is  the  trouble.  There  is  no  better  nor  more  useful  public 
servant  in  the  halls  of  Congress  than  that  gentleman,  but  like  the 
small  boy  with  the  stomach  ache,  he  only  knew  there  was  trouble 
somewhere.  He  couldn't  tell  just  how  serious  it  was,  and  his  only 
recourse  was  to  lift  up  his  voice. 

The  point  is  obvious.  If  the  men  in  Congress  and  in  public 
life  have  not  gotten  the  facts,  what  of  the  American  public  who 
oppose  monopoly  and  want  to  deal  squarely. 


NEW  FEDERAL  POLICY  TOWARD  ALASKA  WANTED    315 

It  is  idle  to  abuse  the  special  agent,  it  is  unfair  ofttimes  to 
attack  the  executive  officers  of  the  land  office.  They  have  no 
alternative  but  to  carry  out  the  policy  of  the  existing  administra- 
tion, and  are  very  much  in  the  same  position  of  a  firing  squad 
executing  upon  a  comrade  the  decree  of  a  drum  head  court 
martial. 

The  report  of  your  Alaskan  committee  last  year  might  be 
properly  entitled  "Wanted  a  New  Administrative  Policy  for 
Alaska."  That  report,  which  you  so  generously  endorsed,  stands 
with  full  force  today. 

Since  that  time  a  new  and  vigorous  governor  has  made  an 
extensive  tour  throughout  his  territory,  and  is  looking  its  prob- 
lems squarely  in  the  face. 

Since  that  time,  in  season  and  out  of  season,  Alaska's  delegate 
to  Congress  has  been  fearlessly  demanding  "a  new  deal  and 
a  square  deal  for  Alaska,"  and  has  won  an  ever  increasing  sup- 
port. Since  that  time  three  cabinet  officers,  including  the  new 
Secretary  of  the  Interior,  have  visited  Alaska,  and  reported  to  the 
President.  And  the  Secretary  has  shown  his  wisdom  in  asking  the 
co-operation  and  advice  of  our  own  Dr.  Holmes  and  the  only  Dr. 
Brooks  and  their  splendidly  informed  staffs.  And  since  that  time 
the  eminent  judge,  who  presides  at  the  White  House,  has  been 
studying  the  various  plans,  .which  unfortunately  do  not  always 
agree,  weighing  the  facts,  and  promises  speedy  and  equitable 
judgment. 

So  we  again  say  "Wanted.  A  New  Policy,"  and  what  is 
equally  important,  "Wanted.  An  Informed  Public  Opinion  to  Sup- 
port and  Encourage  Such  a  Policy." 

A  tradesman  in  the  vicinity  of  Boston,  in  a  small  way  of  busi- 
ness, asked  me  last  week  if  Alaska  was  a  part  of  the  state  of 
Washington.  He  is  in  no  sense  characteristic  of  the  East,  but 
his  knowledge  of  geography  is  as  poor  as  is  the  average  good  citi- 
zen's acquaintance  with  the  essential  conditions  in  that  remote 
territory. 

Eastern  Man's  Advice. 

A  few  months  ago  at  an  earnest  gathering  of  Alaskans,  an 
Eastern  man,  invited  for  his  recognized  impartiality  and  wide  ex- 
perience, said  in  effect:  "I  have  just  returned  from  Alaska.  My 
preconceived  ideas,  gathered  from  all  I  could  find  in  the  Eastern 
press,  have  been  radically  modified.  My  advice  is:  Raise  a  few 
thousand  dollars'  expense  and  invite  one  or  two  eminent  Eastern 
magazine  writers  to  Alaska,  and  through  them  the  true  facts  will 


316         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

begin  to  come  before  the  people — particularly  the  Eastern  readers 
— and  you  will  get  immediate  sympathetic  support." 

Gentlemen  of  the  American  Mining  Congress,  it  is  pertinent 
to  the  subject,  and  I  believe  it  is  fair  and  right  that  I  tell  you,  that 
members  of  your  Alaskan  committee  have  by  invitation  attended 
at  least  a  half-dozen  subsequent  meetings,  at  which,  in  the  aggregate, 
fully  seventy  per  cent  of  Alaska  coal  claimants  were  represented. 
It  was  proposed  to  take  some  action  upon  the  advice  I  have  just 
described,  and  I  say  to  you,  with  no  desire  to  belittle  these  men, 
that  by  no  further  self-sacrifice  could  they  raise  the  needed  money 
until  this  question  is  settled. 

Further  than  that,  some  months  ago  certain  congressmen  let  it 
become  known  that  if  a  representative  Alaskan  mining  man  would 
come  to  Washington  he  would  be  given  a  fair  and  impartial 
hearing.  A  committee  of  Alaskans  worked  for  several  days,  and 
had  several  meetings,  and  finally  the  bare  cost  of  a  return  fare  was 
raised.  And  if  that  Alaskan  unrolled  his  blankets  elsewhere  than  in 
the  public  parks  at  Washington  he  did  so  at  his  own  expense. 

And  why  should  this  be  ?  These  men  are  of  the  same  bone  and 
flesh,  courage,  experience  and  ability,  as  those  who  in  other  fields 
of  Alaskan  exploration  have  already  won  a  pioneer's  reward.  But 
consider  their  condition.  Their  explorations,  privations  and  dis- 
coveries have  been  held  as  naught,  and  their  money  spent  in  de- 
velopment has  been  claimed  as  a  forfeit. 

When  you  decree  the  title  to  a  man's  home  is  void,  you  rob 
him  of  that  home;  and  rather  you  destroy  a  man's  credit  and 
standing,  you  had  better  turn  his  family  into  the  street.  So  I  say  to 
you  that  there  are  men  of  Alaska  who  have  spent  the  savings  of 
their  lifetime,  and  the  money  of  their  f-riends  in  the  development 
of  small  areas  of  coal  land,  who  have  years  ago  paid  the  American 
Government  its  price  in  full  for  that  land ;  and  against  whose 
entries  no  charges  or  intimation  of  charges  have  been  made  by  any 
special  agent  or  other  official — who  cannot  get  their  patents  or  raise 
or  borrow  a  dollar  on  their  property. 

And  what  is  the  reason?  It  is  because — please  do  not  mis- 
understand the  spirit  of  this  utterance  when  I  say  to  you — an  in- 
creasingly large  number  of  people,  in  the  West  at  least,  have  come 
to  believe  that,  irrespective  of  the  merits  or  desserts  of  the  indi- 
vidual, but  in  response  to  what  is  thought  to  be  a  public  demand,  the 
American  Government  is  going  to  repudiate  its  statutory  obliga- 
tion and  wipe  out  all  existing  claims.. 


NEW  FEDERAL  POLICY  TOWARD  ALASKA  WANTED    317 

"And  for  what  end  and  for  whose  benefit?"  they  ask.  "In 
order  to  lease  these  claims  which  the  toil  and  labor  and  savings  of 
others  have  discovered,  prospected  and  partially  developed^  to  the 
obvious  few  whose  condition  of  special  privilege  unll  alone  enable 
them  to  operate  Alaskan  coal  measures  under  a  leasing  system," 
A  Leasing  Bill  No  Remedy. 

I  am  not  at  this  time  attacking  the  leasing  system  of  Alaska 
coal  per  se.  It  is  a  straw  man,  as  yet  unsupported  by  merit,  sound 
morals  or  reasoning;  and  we  will  not  turn  aside  to  take  serious 
issue.  Yet  lest  we  be  understood  to  impugn  the  ability  or  sin- 
cerity of  the  able  men  who  have  been  learnedly  discussing  or  out- 
lining proposed  leasing  bills  for  Alaska  coal,  let  me  say,  with  all 
possible  emphasis  and  care,  I  have  examined  with  much  appre- 
ciation at  least  one  such  proposed  measure.  It  shows  admirable 
care  and  marked  ability.  Its  author  I  am  pleased  and  proud  to 
know ;  and  with  him  I  have  no  controversy  on  the  merits  of  the  ex- 
isting coal  cases.  He  will,  I  think,  frankly  tell  you  that  he  knows 
little  or  nothing  about  them.  He  has  had  neither  opportunity  nor 
reason  to  know  about  them.  Get  this,  please,  in  fairness  to  many 
members  of  Congress  of  whom  he  is  representative.  He  has  merely 
been  asked,  as  an  eminent  authority  on  public  land  legislation,  to 
draft  a  bill  for  the  leasing  of  coal  lands  contained  in  the  public 
domain  in  Alaska  with  special  safeguards  against  monopoly  and 
abuse.  I  only  wish  that  the  same  man  might  be  constituted  the  im- 
partial tribunal  for  the  determination  of  all  the  pending  cases;  and 
that  he  had  the  opportunity,  in  a  judicial  capacity,  to  thoroughly 
sift  the  facts  and  merits. 

The  Alaskan  coal  question  is  still  unsettled  even  by  the  passage 
of  such  a  measure.  Let  us  first  bury  the  corpse  before  we  part  its 
garments  amongst  us*. 

Is  it  proposed  instead  of  a  patent  to  offer  the  claimant  a  lease? 
If  he  is  entitled  to  a  patent  the  offer  is  unfair  to  him,  and  if  he  has 
obtained  his  claim  by  fraud,  the  offer  is  equally  unfair  to  the 
Government. 

A  Profound^Unrest  in  Alaska. 

Alaskans  are  either  entitled  to  patents,  or  to  nothing  at  all. 
To  refuse  a  patent  and  suggest  a  lease,  or  to  wear  out  by  inter- 
minable* delay  one  deserving  of  a  patent  until  he  offers  to  exchange 
his  birthright  for  a  lease,  is  a  course  that  we  still  refuse  to  believe 
possible.  But  it  has  been  freely  charged.  And  it  has  been  as 
freely  said  by  otherwise  conservative  men  from  many  parts  of 
Alaska,  that  if  submitted  to  the  suffrage  of  the  residents  of  Alaska 


318         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

tJvey  zvould  roll  up  a  majority  in  favor  of  annexation  to  a  neigh- 
boring Dominion.  And  there  are  in  Alaska  fully  as  large  a  per- 
centage of  men  who  have  fought  under  the  flag  as  may  be  found 
in  any  part  of  the  United  States. 

And  this  statement  does  not  imply  a  lack  of  love  of  country  or 
of  inherent  patriotism.  It  arises  from  stern  economic-bread-and- 
butter  conditions. 

It  is  a  matter  of  general  knowledge  that  our  neighbors  across 
the  line  have  been  singularly  happy  and  successful  in  the  handling 
of  their  public  domain  irrespective  of  distance  from  the  seat  of 
government.  Results  to  which  our  existing  system  in  Alaska  does 
not  as  readily  lend  itself.  So  that  while  these  same  men  might 
favor  annexation,  there  are  hundreds  of  them  that  if  need  arose 
would  come  home  to  fight  for  the  flag  against  any  extra-continental 
foe. 

Fair  Play  for  the  Grubstaker. 

That  earnest  band  of  patriots  whose  outcries,  like  those  of 
Gideon's  Band,  have  been  mistaken  by  the  administration  as  the 
voice  of  the  people,  and  the  voice  of  God,  have  summarized  the 
Alaskan  question  into  a  Proposition,  a  Corollary  and  a  Q.  E.  D. 
which  may  be  stated  thus: 

The  Proposition  Is: 

Granted  that  while,  possibly,  the  man  who  in  Alaska  actually 
discovered  the  coal  vein  an-d  chopped  and  drove  the  stakes  may  have 
some  right ;  and  that  after  a  few  more  years'  deliberation  he  may 
be  sought  out  in  some  Old  Soldiers'  Home  or  poor  house  and  be 
handed  a  moss-grown  patent ;  yet  the  man  in  the  states  who  gave 
him  the  money  to  buy  his  ticket  to  Alaska,  bought  the  flour  and 
bacon  he  ate,  the  shoes  he  prospected  in,  and  the  axe  that  drove  the 
stake,  this  man,  who  made  the  whole  thing  possible,  is  a  non- 
resident robber,  a  conspirator,  and  should  be  promptly  indicted. 

This  is  the  proposition,  and  I  may  add  that  such  a  man  is 
usually  depicted  behind  a  mahogany  desk  in  the  East.  Why  the 
telling  detail  of  a  plug  hat  has  been  overlooked  I  cannot  say. 

Now  comes  the  corollary : 

"Corollary." 

The  resources  of  Alaska  belong  to.a//  the  people!  Therefore, 
and  Q.  E.  D.,  we  will  take  away  from  the  wicked  few,  whose  sav- 
ings have  made  even  its  existence  known,  and  give  it  unto  all  the 
people,  who  have  toiled  not,  neither  have  they  spinned,  and  yet  the 


NEW  FEDERAL  POLICY  TOWARD  ALASKA  WANTED    319 

bulk  of  whom,  unlike  the  heavily  endowed  Prophet,  readily  need 
the  money. 

No  man  with  a  day's  business  experience,  no  man  with  moder- 
ate powers  of  observation,  but  can  recognjze  the  enormous  injustice 
of  such  a  proposal. 


Transportation  in  Alaska. 

BY   DUNCAN   M.    STEWART, 
SEWARD,   ALASKA. 


Mr.  Chairman  and  Fellow  Members  of  the  American  Mining 
Congress : — My  first  duty  is  to  express  my  keen  appreciation  of  the 
honor  conferred  upon  me  by  the  invitation  to  address  you,  and  if 
only  that  honor  did  not  carry  with  it  a  serious  responsibility  and  a 
heart-rending  feeling  of  inability  to  rise  to  the  importance  of  the 
occasion  and  deal  adequately  with  the  subject,  I  could  with  all  hon- 
csty,  express  to  you  my  happiness  also. 

I  believe  any  man  who  has  the  temerity  to  address  a  public 
meeting  invests  himself  with  a  responsibility  to  say  something;  to 
deliver  a  real  message ;  and  when  it  comes  to  addressing  one  of  the 
most  powerful  organizations  of  men  in  America  on  a  topic  of  vital 
interest  to  a  country  twelve  times  the  size  of  New  York  state,  and 
whose  land  area  is  more  than  the  combined  area  of  the  states  of 
Washington,  Oregon,  California,  Arizona  and  Nevada,  the  burden 
of  responsibility  is  certainly  not  diminished.  I  feel  that  a  man  in 
such  circumstances  should  divest  himself  and  his  remarks  of  clap- 
trap and  buncombe,  adhere  strictly  to  facts,  and  avoid  sensational- 
ism. We  have  enough  of  that  sort  of  thing  in  the  utterances  of 
some  public  men  who  know  little  or  nothing  of  the  real  conditions 
in  Alaska,  and  for  that  matter  wherever  great  issues  are  discussed 
and  great  political  questions  involved,  where  even  the  flag  is  not 
sacred,  but  has  to  be  unfurled  to  the  wind  of  verbose  orators  and 
then  held  at  angle  to  hide  in  its  glorious  folds  the  ignorance  or 
casuistry  of  the  speaker. 

Realizing  then  my  responsibility  as  one  privileged  to  address 
this  great  meeting,  as  a  resident  of  Alaska ;  as  one  deeply  interested 
in  the  development  of  its  natural  resources — yet  holding  no  brief 
from  any  corporation  or  coterie  of  individuals — I  beg  to  assure  you, 
and  all  those  to  whom  these  words  may  come,  that  what  I  have 
to  say  to  you  today  is  absolute,  unadulterated  fact.  For  this  rea- 
son I  shall  refrain  from  expressing  mere  opinions ;  I  shall  not  dis- 
cuss the  merits  or  demerits  of  a  leasing  system ;  I  shall  not  question 
the  desirability  or  otherwise  of  government  ownership  of  railways ; 
I  shall  not  expatiate  on  any  contentious  subject,  but  will  confine 
myself  'entirely  to  a  statement  of  incontrovertible  facts  regarding 
transportation  and  kindred  matters  in  Alaska,  and  leave  it  to  you 


TRANSPORTATION    IN   ALASKA  321 

to  draw  your  own  conclusions  and  decide  what  we  are  going  to 
do  about  it.  With  this  understanding,  I  bespeak  for  the  subject 
your  kind  attention  and  earnest  consideration  and  for  myself  your 
generous  indulgence. 

In  the  first  place,  Alaska  is  a  beautiful  and  delightful  country ; 
and  its  climate  is  the  most  salubrious  in  the  United  States  ac- 
cording- to  army  vitality  reports  and  the  experience  of  the  civil 
population  residing  there. 

Every  Alaskan  harbor  south  and  east  of  Cook  Inlet  is  ice 
free  and  open  to  navigation  all  the  year  around.  While  the  ports 
of  Quebec,  Montreal,  St.  John,  Albany,  and  Buffalo  are  absolutely 
closed  to  navigation  during  the  winter,  all  of  the  most  important 
ports  of  Alaska,  excepting  Nome,  Fairbanks  and  St.  Michaels,  are 
open  to  winter  transportation.  Ketchikan,  Juneau,  Skaguay,  Cor- 
dova, Valdez  and  Seward  enjoy  at  least"  a  weekly  mail  service  from 
the  United  States,  and  the  three  last  named  towns  are  situated  on 
harbors  that  are  unexcelled,  if  not  unequaled,  by  any  others  on  the 
Atlantic  or  Pacific  coasts.  These  three  place,  Cordova,  Valdez  and 
Seward,  are  the  winter  ports  for  Alaska  proper.  Skaguay  is  an 
important  port  but  is  mainly  used  in  winter  to  go  to  Dawson, 
which  is  in  Canada  and  not  in  Alaska,  as  many  Americans  seem  to 
think.  Even  the  post  office  department  is  not  always  sure  on  thin 
point,  and  it  is  on  record  that  one  of  Uncle  Sam's  alert  inspectors 
wrote  sharply  to  the  post  master  at  Dawson  for  the  usual  returns 
which  were  not  arriving  in  Washington  as  promptly  as  the  regula- 
tions required.  That  official  of  his  Britannic  Majesty,  however, 
replied  that  he  had  been  faithfully  forwarding  the  returns  to  his 
own  government  at  Ottawa,  where  they  belonged! 

Three  Seaports  Natural  Termini  for  Railroads. 

These  three  sea-ports  are  the  logical  and  natural  termini  for 
railroads  to  the  interior — for  what  we  may  call  trunk  lines — but 
only  at  Cordova  has  the  steel  been  laid  for  any  material  distance. 
There  the  Copper  River  &  Northwestern  R.  R.  has  trains  in  opera- 
tion for  something  over  two  hundred  miles  and  has  been  hauling 
ore  that  distance  from  the  Bonanza  mine  since  last  April.  This  is  a 
standard  gauge  road  of  heavy  construction*  steel  bridges  and  well- 
ballasted  track,  that  has  the  comparison  entirely  in  its  favor  when 
compared  with  the  best  pioneer  railroads  of  the  Northwestern 
states  and  Canada,  lines  that  now  constitute  the  great  transconti- 
nental systems  of  America.  This  magnificent  road  has  opened  up 
to  prospectors  a  country  which  otherwise  would  have  been  closed 
to  them  forever,  and  hundreds  of  people  are  living  along  its  route 


322         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

and  towns  springing  up  that  were  not,  and  never  would  be,  on  the 
map  before  this  enterprise  became  effective.  This  is  what  is  known 
as  the  Morgan-Guggenheim  road,  so  popularly  believed  in  the  east 
to  be  "bottling" — rather  than  opening — up  the  country.  Yet  this 
road  has  made  it  possible  for  men  to  penetrate  far  into  the  mountain 
ranges  and  placer  valleys  in  search  of  precious  metals  that  would 
have  been  irretrievably  locked  up  without  it.  Before  the  advent 
of  this  railroad  it  would  take  a  man  a  whole  year  to  get  a  camp 
equipment  and  outfit  of  supplies  as  far  into  that  section  of  the 
country  as  he  can  now  go  in  twenty-four  hours. 

At  Valdez  there  is  not  enough  track  laid  to  dwell  on  the  fea- 
ture of  railroad  transportation  there,  but  that  is  the  starting  point 
of  the  Government  trail  to  Fairbanks.  All  roads  and  trails  built  by 
the  Government  in  Alaska  are  in  charge  of  a  road  commission, 
under  the  war  department,  and  are  properly  described  as  "mili- 
tary roads."  This  road,  from  Valdez  to  Fairbanks,  is  one  of  our 
best,  and  has  been  of  tremendous  importance  to  Valdez  and  the 
country  generally  in  opening  up  the  mining  territory  tributary  to 
Fairbanks  and  the  Tanana  River  and  developing  a  great  gold  pro- 
ducing camp. 

At  Seward  a  standard  gauge  railway  has  been  completed  for 
seventy-two  miles  and  surveyed  for  seven  hundred  miles,  includ- 
ing branch  lines,  through  the  very  center  of  Alaska.  This  road, 
which  is  known  as  the  Alaska  Northern  Railroad,  gives  a  very 
efficient  car  service  daily  except  Sunday  for  passengers  and  express 
freight,  with  an  occasional  steam  locomotive  freight  train,  as  traffic 
demands.  This  company  does  not  operate  in  winter  as  it  is  under- 
going a  financial  re-organization,  which,  by  the  way,  was  brought 
about  by  the  action  of  a  federal  judge  who  granted  a  receivership 
on  the  petition  of  one  man,  without  according  a  hearing,  or  even 
giving  notice,  to  any  official  of  the  railway.  He  appointed  his  own 
brother-in-law  receiver  at  a  salary  of  $1,500  per  month  and  ex- 
penses, and  then  immediately  adjourned  his  court  for  six  months, 
thereby  effectively  preventing  the  owners  from  removing  the  re- 
ceiver and  re-obtaining  the  management  of  their  own  property. 
This  corrupt  judge  was*  removed  from  office  later  in  punishment 
for  this  crime,  and  that  is  about  the  extent  of  the  aid  the  present 
administration  at  Washington  has  given  to  this  particular  enter- 
prise. The  passenger  traffic  of  this  road  is  very  heavy  in  summer 
and  its  right-of-way  affords  excellent  traveling  for  dog-teams  in 
winter,  being  used  as  part  of  the  "Seward-Iditarod  Trail"  for  about 
eighty  miles. 


TRANSPORTATION    IN    ALASKA        .  323 

Although  originally  intended  to  primarily  tap  the  resources 
of  the  Kenai  Peninsula,  Kuskokwim,  Susitna  and  Tanana  River 
valleys,  the  raison  d'etre  of  this  line  now  is  the  coal  of  the  Ma- 
tanuska  valley,  which  Government  authorities  claim  to  be  the  most 
valuable  of  all  known  coal  fields  in  Alaska.  In  this  section  recently 
Mr.  Gtfford  Pinchot  traversed  part  of  the  survey  route  of  this 
railway,  and  had  to  do  so  on  foot  by  the  way — which  I  trust  em- 
phasized in  his  case  the  desirability  of  improved  transportation 
facilities  and  I  heard  him  say  that  the  soil  was  as  rich  as  that  of 
the  richest  of  our  western  states.  At  all  events,  he  saw  several 
varieties  of  edible  berries,  such  as  currants,  raspberries,  blueber- 
ries, cranberries,  etc.,  growing  wild  in  the  utmost  profusion,  while 
there  was  such  a  continuously  luxuriant  growth  of  "redtop"  grass — 
which  happened  to  be  wet  at  the  time — that  he  could  only  describe 
his  progress  by  saying  that  he  "swam  over  that  trail."  He  did  not, 
however,  observe  any  great  evidences  of  human  industry,  any 
serious  attempts  at  farming  or  clearing  off  this  rich  land,  much  less 
a  succession  of  towns  and  villages.  No,  the  route  to  these  coal 
fields  is  at  present  traversed  only  by  a  horse  trail ;  you  cannot  drive 
a  wagon  over  it ;  the  Government  did  nothing  towards  it,  and  it 
cannot  even  be  dignified  by  the  title  of  "Military  Road."  It  is  an 
expensive  business  getting  in  supplies  over  it;  there  are  no  attrac- 
tions about  it  for  the  prospector  or  pioneer;  in  short  there  are  no 
transportation  facilities.  But  build  a  railway  into  that  country ;  open 
up  the  coal  mines  and  operate  them,  and  people  would  flock  there ; 
a  local  market  for  the  food  products  of  that  rich  soil  would  be  at 
once  created,  and  the  land  would  blossom  as  the  rose. 
Transportation  Great  Problem  of  Alaska. 

Transportation  is  the  most  transcendently  important  problem 
confronting  Alaska  today.  The  speakers  preceding  me  have  given 
you  accurate,  #s  well  as  graphic,  information  about  its  coal,  its  gold, 
its  copper,  its  timber^  and  other  great  natural  resources.  You  have 
heard  from  sound,  practical  men  how  they  would  deal  with  the 
homestead  laws  and  the  coal  land  laws,  and  the  people  of  Alaska 
have  received  from  others  a  variegated  multitude  of  panaceas  for 
all  the  ills  that  country  is  heir  to,  but  let  me  assure  you  that  there 
can  be  no  real  cure  for  her  troubles  that  does  not  include  in  its 
composition  the  subject  of  transportation.  All  questions  affecting 
the  physical  development  of  Alaska  are  indissolubly  connected  with 
the  one  great  question  of  transportation. 

The  opening  of  the  coal  lands  is  absolutely  essential  to  the 
building  of  railways  through  central  Alaska  by  private  capital.  Of- 


324         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

ficials  of  the  Alaska  Northern  R.  R.  inform  me  that  they  arc 
unable  to  operate  trains  hauled  by  steam  locomotives  so  long  as 
they  have  to  pay  fourteen  or  fifteen  dollars  per  ton  for  imported 
coal,  as  they  do  at  present,  and  I  understand  that  competent  of- 
ficials of  the  Pennsylvania  R.  R.  say  they  could  not  operate  that 
great  system  profitably  at  a  coal  fuel  cost  of  twelve  dollars  per 
ton.  At  Seward,  the  terminus  of  this  railroad,  private  individuals 
pay  seventeen  dollars  per  ton  for  coal,  whereas-  if  the  Matanuska 
coal  was  available  the  article  could  be  bought  for  from  $5  to  $7  per 
ton,  and  have  a  much  better  grade  of  coal  at  that. 

You  have  heard  from  other  speakers  that  while  the  coal  fields 
of  Alaska  are  withdrawn  from  entry  it  becomes  a  crime  (larceny) 
to  use  local  coal.  The  anomaly  thus  created  is  best  illustrated  by 
the  plight  in  which  the  Tanana  Valley  Railway  finds  itself.  There 
is  an  abundance  of  good  steam  coal  along  the  right  of  way  of  this 
road,  and  a  scarcity  of  timber,  but  it  is  forced  to  leave  the  coal  and 
burn  wood  at  a  cost  of  about  $12  per  cord!  Should  not  this  be 
set  right? 

There  are  eight  lines  of  railroad  in  Alaska  with  about  500  miles 
of  track.  Five  of  these  are  purely  local,  catering  to  the  traffic  of 
the  mines  in  their  respective  territory.  The  other  three,  namely, 
the  Copper  River  £  Northwestern;  White  Pass  &  Yukon  and  the 
Alaska  Northern  are  the  most  important  to  the  country  generally, 
and  of  these,  the  White  Pass  &  Yukon  Railroad  is  the  only  one 
affording  transportation  facilities  into  the  very  interior  of  Alaska, 
by  way  of  the  Yukon  River,  and  that  is  partly  through  Canadian 
Territory,  with  only  112  miles  of  track  all  told.  This  route  to  the 
interior  can  only  be  used  advantageously  in  summer,  as  the  Yukon 
River  is  frozen  in  winter.  This  road,  which  was  a  financial  suc- 
cess from  its  inception,  was  built  with  English  capital  and  has  been 
of  great  value  in  developing  American  territory  on  the  Alaska  side 
of  the  border.  • 

What  these  two  railway  enterprises  have  accomplished  in  the 
way  of  developing  the  latent  wealth  of  certain  sections,  and  much 
more  besides,  can  be  achieved  by  the  building  of  a  trunk  line  along 
the  projected  route  of  the  Alaska  Northern  Railroad,  and  the  people 
of  Alaska  do  not  care  who  build  it ;  they  will  extend  a  hearty  wel- 
come to  the  owners  of  such  a  project  whoever  they  may  be.  There 
is  not  a  coast  town  in  Alaska  today  that  is  not  envious  of  Cordova, 
because  it  has  a  real,  live  road,  steadily  and  irresistibly  forging  its 
iron  way  into  the  heart  of  the  territory  contiguous  to  that  terminus. 
The  people  of  Alaska  differ  among  themselves  on  political  and 


TRANSPORTATION    IN    ALASKA  325 

economic  questions,  and  they  are  far  from  unanimous  as  to  the 
best  method  of  exploiting  its  great  natural  resources;  but  they  are 
a  solid  unit  on  the  subject  of  transportation,  and  they  are  quite 
indifferent  as  to  whether  private  capital  or  the  United  States 
Government  build  trunk  lines  of  railway  and  good  wagon  roads, 
so  long  os  they  are  built,  and  that  soon. 

Wagon  Roads  Needed. 

But  the  building  of  trunk  lines,  or  any  other  lines,  of  railroad 
is  not  the  only  essential ;  there  is  even  a  more  crying  need  for  good 
wagon  roads.  The  appropriation  for  roads  and  trails  in  Alaska  is 
wofully  inadequate,  and  the  methods  of  expending  it  are  distinctly 
bad.  I  could  point  to  instances  where  new  trails  stopped  short  in 
the  middle  of  the  woods,  having  reached  nowhere,  because  the  ap- 
propriation for  that  particular  piece  of  work  became  suddenly  ex- 
hausted. I  have  seen  the  necessary  repairs  Jto  an  existing  Gov- 
ernment road  discontinued  at  a  critical  spot  for  the  same  reason, 
although  a  surplus  existed  after  the  completion  of  some  other 
specific  work,  but  it  could  not  be  availed  of,  under  the  regulations 
governing  these  funds.  The  adoption  of  such  methods  in  the 
building  of  roads  by  private  capital  would  end  inevitably  in  bank- 
ruptcy and  failure.  And  let  me  say  here  that  the  Alaska  road 
commission  and  the  excellent  officers  and  gentlemen  who  are 
charged  with  its  administration  are  not  to  blame  for  the  unfortunate 
conditions  to  which  I  have  alluded.  The  people  of  Alaska  owe  a 
great  deal  to  the  Road  Commission  for  the  zeal  and  efficiency  it 
has  displayed  and  the  work  it  has  accomplished  in  the  face  of  "red 
tape"  and  ridiculously  inadequate  money  appropriations.  These 
gentlemen  do  the  best  they  can,  but  the  results,  nevertheless,  are 
horrible.  Some  of  the  Government  roads  in  Alaska  are  a  disgrace 
to  the  Nation;  even  the  Government  employes  themselves  are 
ashamed  of  them,  and  with  a  view  to  bringing  home  to  Congress 
and  the  people  of  the  United  States  the  wretched  results  of  their 
efforts,  as  compared  with  those  achieved  under  a  policy  of  enlight- 
enment and  common  sense,  they  have  inserted  in  some  of  the  official 
publications  issued  at  Washington  illustrations  taken  from  actual 
photographs  of  American  and  Canadian  roads  in  Alaska,  and  the 
adjoining  Yukon  Territory.  On  one  page  you  will  see  the  picture 
of  a  beautifully  smooth,  well  drained,  level  Canadian  road,  fit  for  a 
pedestrian,  an  automobile,  or  a  landau,  while  on  the  opposite  page 
you  will  find  an  illustration — an  American  road — of  a  streak  of 
mud,  roots  and  rocks,  unfit  for  the  use  of  man,  beast,  or  machinery, 
and  positively  ruinous,  alike  to  a  man's  soul  and  body, 


326         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

In  the  administration  of  justice  and  the  building  of  public 
roads  and  trails  in  the  far  Northwest,  the  Canadians  have  us  beaten 
to  a  standstill.  We  have  just  the  same  kind  of  country  as  they 
have,  only  more  of  it,  yet  they  have  more  people  and  infinitely  better 
transportation  facilities  on  their  side  of  the  imaginary  border  line. 
Why  should  this  be  ?  I  have  given  you  the  facts  and  leave  the  answer 
to  yourselves.  I  venture  one  reply  to  this  question,  and  it  is,  that  the 
average  member  of  the  Canadian  Parliament  is  in  much  closer  touch 
with  the  actual  conditions^  prevailing  in  his  country  as  a  whole — 
even  to  its  remotest  corners — than  is  the  average  member  of  the 
United  States  Congress  regarding  his  great  country.  Indeed  it 
seems  as  if  ignorance  is  at  the  bottom  of  most  of  Alaska's  troubles; 
ignorance  of  its  immense  area;  ignorance  of  its  climate;  ignorance 
of  its  resources,  and  what  is  worst  of  all,  ignorance  of  its  people. 
The  most  widespread  misconceptions  are  probably  those  regarding 
its  climate  and  people.  The  generally  accepted  notion  is  that 
Alaska  is  a  land  of  perpetual  ice  and  snow,  inhabited  mainly  by 
Eskimos,  while  the  facts  are  that  not  more  than  one-third  of  it  is 
within  the  Arctic  Circle,  and  that  the  great  majority  of  its  popu- 
lation is  white — a  mixture  of  the  best  elements  of  the  Caucasian 
race — the  identical  class  of  red-corpuscled  people  who  placed  Ore- 
gon, California  and  Washington  among  the  great  producing  States 
of  this  Nation. 

Every  trunk  line  of  railroad  in  Alaska  can  be  operated  daily 
,in  winter.  The  White  Pass  &  Yukon  Railroad  runs  trains 
every  day  in  the  year  except  Sundays;  the  Copper  River  & 
North  Western  Railroad  runs  trains  often  enough  to  accommodate 
the  traffic  and  maintains  its  line  open  the  entire  winter.  The  Alaska, 
Northern  can  operate  on  as  regular  a  schedule  in  winter  as  in  sum- 
mer; while  the  Tanama  River  Railroad,  which  is  in  north  latitude 
65°,  conducts  a  train  service  all  the  year  round.  I  have  already 
intimated  that  the  only  Alaska  seaports  closed  to  navigation  in 
winter  are  those  on  Behring  Sea  and  Cook  Inlet.  We  have  grand 
glaciers  and  magnificent  mountains,  some  of  them  capped  with 
perpetual  snows,  and  in  these  as  well  as  other  respects  Alaska  pos- 
sesses a  wealth  of  scenic  features  that  would  turn  the  passenger 
agents  of  some  of  our  great  American,  Canadian  and  European 
railways  green  with  envy.  We  have  also  flowers  and  sunshine, 
beautiful  gardens  and  flowing  hayfields,  Christian  churches  and 
secular  schools,  and  such  a  generally  salubrious  climate  that  the 
death-rate  among  the  white  population  is  the  lowest  in  the  world. 


TRANSPORTATION    IN    ALASKA  327 

If  we  can  dispel  the'ignorance  and  disseminate  the  truth;  if 
we  can  enlighten  the  congressional  representative  from  our  indi- 
vidual district,  and  all  the  other  legislators  with  whom  we  come 
in  touch;  if  we  can  get  these  well-meaning  people  to  understand  the 
real,  actual  conditions  in  some  measure  as  we  who  live  in  Alaska 
know  them,  I  believe  we  can  look  forward  hopefully  to  the  adoption 
of  relief  measures  which  will  lead  to  the  development  of  Alaska  on 
a  scale  commensurate  with  its  size  and  the  importance  of  its 
potential  resources. 

Support  of  Congress  Necessary. 

The  solution  of  the  transportation  problem  will  cause  most  of 
our  troubles  to  vanish,  but  we  are  not  going  to  solve  it  by  vituper- 
ation and  abuse,  especially  of  the  powers  that  be.  I  believe  that  the 
President  and  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  are  alive  to  the  real 
situation  and  needs  of  Alaska,  and  that  they  are  sincere  in  their 
desire  to  bring  order  and  good  out  of  the  existing  chaos,  but  they 
and  their  successors  in  office,  must  be  powerless  without  the  sup- 
port of  Congress,  and  I  think  that  is  the  real  body  to  which  we 
must  address  ourselves.  If  we  can  obtain  the  sympathetic  ear  of 
a  majority  in  Congress,  the  Government  may  be  authorized  to  ren- 
der some  assistance  to  private  capital,  either  by  way  of  guarantee 
of  bond  interest  or  a  land  grant,  or  a  coal  grant,  and  thereby  insure 
the  building  of  a  great  trunk  line  of  railway  from  the  sea  to  the 
Yukon  river  with  which  to  unlock  this  wonderful  treasure  box, 
to  the  enrichment  of  the  whole  nation.  Or,  Congress  may 
decide  to  have  the  Government  build  and  operate  such  a 
line  and  thereby  retain  the  key  in  its  own  hands.  That  it 
will  be  a  richly  paying  proposition  for  the  owners,  whoever  they 
may  be,  is  not  doubted  for  a  moment  by  anyone  familiar  with 
pioneer  railroading  in  the  Northwest,  and  particularly  so  in 
Alaska  under  an  enlightened  policy  of  trail  and  wagon  road 
building,  which  would  create  feeders  and  great  arteries  of  traffic 
for  the  main  line. 

In  a  new  country  capital,  for  obvious  reasons,  expects  greater 
rewards  than  in  older  and  more  settled  communities,  and  with  the 
inducements  which  are  being  constantly  offered  in  such  countries  as 
Mexico,  Brazil,  Argentina,  Russia,  China  and  Africa,  it  behooves 
us  to  see  that  no  unnecessary  handicaps  are  placed  upon  capital 
seeking  investment  in  Alaska,  and  above  all  when  such  capital  is 
seeking  investment  in  the  all-important  line  of  transportation.  I 
believe  the  enormously  enhanced  value  of  properties  caused  by  the 
building  of  such  a  line,  in  conjunction  with  a  proper  system  of 


328         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

wagon  roads  and  trails,  would  amply  repay  the  Government  for  any 
assistance  it  might  render  to  private  capital  in  the  promotion  of 
such  a  laudable  enterprise.  On  the  other  hand,  while  I  am  not  an 
advocate  of  government  ownership  on  general  principles,  I  have  no 
hesitation  in  saying  that  if  the  people  of  the  United  States  were 
to  build  such  a  trunk  line  system  for  themselves,  and  operate  it  on 
business  lines,  the  return  on  the  investment  would  be  comparable 
only  to  that  made  in  Egypt  for  the  people  of  Great  Britain  by  that 
far-sighted  statesman,  Benjamin  Disraeli,  when  he  purchased  for 
the  nation  the  shares  of  the  Suez  Canal. 


The  High  Grade  Coals  of  Alaska. 

BY  WILLIAM  GRIFFITH, 
SCRANTON,   PA. 


As  engineer  and  geologist  we  have  had  opportunity  on  two 
separate  occasions  to  study  and  report  upon  the  economic  conditions 
affecting  the  coal  resources  of  one  of  the  principal  coal  fields  of 
Alaska.  We  now  find  that  the  people  of  the  United  States  are 
being  taught  erroneous,  extravagant  notions  regarding  the  economic 
value  an-d  extent  of  these  fields,  by  the  wildly  exaggerated  state- 
ments and  fanciful  "misinformation  drawn  by  some  of  the  writers 
whose  articles  and  schemes  appear  from  time  to  time  in  the  maga- 
zines and  newspapers  of  the  day.  Therefore,  we  deem  it  a  patriotic 
duty  to  make  the  following  brief,  plain  statements  of  the  geological 
conditions  which  control  the  economic  value  of  these  much  talked- 
of  coal  areas;  this  more  particularly  at  the  present  time,  when  our 
legislators  are  about  to  enact  laws  for  the  control  and  proper  con- 
servation of  these  important  national  resources  and  should  do  it 
with  accurate  knowledge  before  them  of  the  conditions  which  pre- 
vail, in  order  that  the  laws  they  enact  may  the  better  fit  the  circum- 
stances. 

In  common  with  all  the  coals  of  the  Pacific  coast,  those  of 
Alaska  are  found  among  the  rocks  of  the  more  recent  geological 
age,  and  speaking  generally  the  coal  beds  which  occur  in  sedi- 
ments which  are  in  the  low  lands  near  to  the  coast  belong  to  the 
grade  commonly  known  as  lignites,  sub-bituminous  or  bituminous 
coals.  The  great  bulk  of  Alaska  coal  belongs  to  one  or  the  other 
of  these  classes  of  ordinary  fuels.  So  undesirable  are  these  low 
grade  coals  for  high-grade  uses  that  the  United  States  is  com- 
pelled to  transport  Pennsylvania  and  West  Virginia  coal  from  our 
Eastern  ports,  around  Cape  Horn  to  the  coaling  stations  on  the 
Pacific,  to  be  used  as  steam  coal  for  the  United  States  Navy,  there 
being  no  high-grade  fuel  now  available  for  this  purpose  on  our 
western  coast. 

As  we  proceed  Eastward  from  the  coast  toward  the  moun- 
tains (which  in  Alaska  are  nearly  all  of  volcanic  origin)  the  exist- 
ing coal  beds  become  much  improved  in  quality,  and  we  therefore 
find  the  highest  grade  coals  of  Alaska  imbedded  in  the  sedimentary 
strata  of  the  mountains,  close  to  the  igneous  or  volcanic  rocks,  and 


330         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

the  gradation  of  the  coal  from  the  low-grade  lignite  to  high-grade 
bituminous  and  anthracite  is  the  direct  result  of  the  remoteness  or 
proximity  of  the  once  hot  volcanic  rocks,  the  heat  from  which  has 
caused  more  or  less  distillation  of  the  volatile  gases  contained  in 
the  once  low-grade  coal,  thus  leaving  the  high  fixed  carbon  required 
to  constitute  a  high-grade  fuel. 

On  the  Pacific  coast  of  the  United  States  there  are  only  two 
coal  fields  of  comparatively  small  extent,  in  which  fuels  of  the 
latter  sort  are  found  in  quantity.  Both  of  these  are  in  Alaska  and 
are  known  as  the  "Matanuska  field"  and  the  "Behring  River"  or 
"Katalla"  field.  The  former  contains  bituminous  and  semi-bitu- 
minous coking  coals,  with  some  anthracite,  and  is  located  200  miles 
northwest  of  the  Katalla  field,  which  latter  is  situated  near  the  coast 
of  Controller  Bay,  about  100  miles  southeast  of  Valdez,  Alaska,  and 
carries  in  the  Western  part  semi-bituminous  and  in  the  easterly 
portion  excellent  anthracite  coal.  The  combined  areas  of  the  two 
fields  is  one  or  two  hundred  square  miles.  Notwithstanding  the 
superficial  extent,  their  actual  content  of  commercial  and  minable 
coal  as  of  present  day  practice  is  apparently  limited,  and  the  wildly 
exaggerated  statements  which  have  been  made  of  the  quantities  of 
this  high-grade  fuel  are  probably  due  to  lack  of  correct  information, 
and  the  resulting  presumption  that  the  mode  of  occurrence  and  con- 
dition of  the  beds  is  similar  in  all  points  to  the  Eastern  coal  fields 
of  the  United  States. 

Large  Areas  Without  Minable  Coal. 

In  Pennsylvania,  West  Virginia  and  Ohio  the  coal  beds  usually 
occur  horizontally.  Each  superficial  acre  may  be  expected,  with  a 
reasonable  degree  of  certainty,  to  carry  its  underlying  acre  of  all 
the  coal  beds  of  the  measures ;  and  therefore  a  similar  extent  of  coal 
field  in  the  Eastern  part  of  the  United  States  would  carry  a  tre- 
mendous quantity  of  minable  coal.  This  is  not  true  of  these  im- 
portant Alaska  coal  fields,  for  as  will  probably  be  discovered  later, 
from  fifty  to  seventy-five  per  cent  or  more  of  the  superficial  area 
of  the  region  probably  contains  no  minable  coal  whatever,  because 
the  structural  geology  has  been  so  affected  by  the  adjacent  igneous 
rocks,  which  are  much  twisted,  contorted,  folded  and  faulted  on 
account  of  the  quakings  and  serious  disturbances  which  as  every- 
one knows,  are  common  to  volcanic  rocks  everywhere,  that  the  coal 
beds  contained  in  these  adjacent  sediments  are  likewise  much  dis- 
turbed, and  instead  of  being  disposed  in  regular  basins  or  in  hori- 
zontal undisturbed  position  in  the  earth,  the  coal  beds  are  usually 
found  existing  in  monoclinal  form,  with  steep  dips,  nearly  vertical 


THE    HIGH    GRADE    COALS    OF    ALASKA  331 

oft-times.  The  coal  is  much  crushed,  due  to  the  tremendous  rock 
pressures,  and  the  beds  are  liable  to  much  distortion  and  folding 
and  are  very  uncertain  as  to  extent  or  continuity,  being  frequently 
interrupted  by  dikes  or  intrusions  of  lava.  They  also  carry  much 
dangerous  mine  gas. 

All  of  these  irregularities  will  render  the  extraction  of  the  coal 
very  expensive,  and  the  available  quantity  in  a  given  extent  of  the 
bed  exceedingly  uncertain  and  much  less  per  unit  of  volume  than 
in  the  undisturbed  eastern  coal  fields. 

Again,  the  geologist  finds  his  study  of  Alaskan  coals  rendered 
very  difficult  and  uncertain  on  account  of  the  thick  mat  of  Alaska 
moss  which  covers  the  entire  surface  (except  at  those  points  where 
rock  exposures  are  caused  by  the  erosion  of  the  stream  banks)  and 
by  the  lack  of  key  rocks,  or  absence  of  similitude  in  the  strike,  dip, 
intercollated  slates  of  the  coal  beds,  and  the  dissimilarity  of  the 
overlying  and  underlying  rocks,  and  the  sequence  of  the  stratifica- 
tion, thus  rendering  the  ^identification  of  the  seams  at  different 
localities  practically  impossible.  The  prospecting  and  exploitation 
of  the  coal  is  therefore  very  difficult  and  at  the  present  time  has  not 
progressed  sufficiently  to  warrant  reliable  estimates.  Indeed,  the 
exposures  and  data  from  which  to  draw  conclusions  as  to  quantities 
are  very  meager,  and  therefore  in  our  opinion,  at  the  present  time 
no  well  qualified,  careful  estimator  would  place  the  quantity  of  com- 
mercially minable  coal  in  these  two  fields  beyond  possibly  300,000,- 
ooo  tons;  and  even  this  may  be  far  too  much.  Thus  the  combined 
total  of  the  present  high-grade  coal  of  Alaska,  instead  of  being,  as 
has  been  often  stated,  far  beyond  the  content  of  the  Pennsylvania 
coal  fields,  is  only  about  one  two-thousandth  part  of  the  commercial 
tonnage  now  estimated  to  be  contained  in  the  anthracite  fields 
alone,  to  say  nothing  of  the  great  additional  quantities  of  bituminous 
coal  in  that  State.  Pennsylvania  alone  actually  produces  nearly,  if 
not  quite,  as  much  coal  every  year  as  the  combined  content  of  these 
two  Alaska  fields. 

As  an  offset  in  a  measure,  of  the  above  related  conditions  un- 
favorable to  economical  mining,  these  coal  fields  are  still  only  par- 
tially explored,  and  future  exploitations  may  lead  to  the  discovery 
of  additional  coal  beds  now  unknown. 

Good  Profit  Requires  Large  Production. 

In  the  western  part  of  this  country  most  of  the  prospecting  is 
done  by  people  who  are  more  familiar  with  metal  than  with  coal 
mining,  and  who  are  accustomed  to  expect  greater  values  from 
comparatively  small  volumes  of  ore.  With  coal,  on  the  contrary, 


332         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

great  value  means  large  quantities,  and  the  latter  requires  extensive 
and  expensive  mining  development  both  inside  the  mines  and  outside, 
and  railroad  transportation  must  be  provided.  Goodly  profits  at  coal 
mining  require  large  production,  and,  therefore,  until  the  under- 
ground exploitation  of  the  beds  has  proceeded  far  enough  from  the 
coal  miner's  point  of  view  to  develope  the  habits  of  the  beds  at  lower 
depths  with  respect  to  their  continuity,  regularity,  and  folded  or 
crushed  condition,  in  order  to  determine  the  probable  economic 
yield  of  a  given  coal  bed,  the  great  outlay  of  money  required  for 
land  purchases  and  the  outside  mining  improvements  and  transpor- 
tation should  be  considered  a  hazardous  expenditure  by  the  careful 
investor. 

In  view  of  the  foregoing,  we  should  say  that  2,000,000  tons 
per  year  is  a  liberal  average  tonnage  to  expect  from  these  two  coal 
areas,  and  at  the  high  royalty  that  has  been  mentioned  by  the  press 
would  have  an  annual  value  of  about  $1,000,000,  which  might  per- 
haps continue  for  100  years.  At  four  per  cent  the  present  worth 
of  such  an  annuity  is  approximately  $25,000,000,  without  consid- 
ering the  deductions  usually  made  to  cover  the  ordinary  uncer- 
tainties of  mining.  And,  therefore,  in  our  view,  the  fabulous  value 
recently  assigned  to  these  Alaska  fields  is  simply  the  utterance  of 
words  without  knowledge.  • 

Our  present  laws  and  restrictions  have  evidently  been  formed 
through  a  misconception  of  the  conditions  as  well  as  the  absolute 
necessities  of  that  rich  district.  Therefore,  for  the  present  they  are 
working  an  actual  hold-up  or  estoppel  to  the  commercial  progress 
of  Alaska.  What  the  district  now  requires  for  its  development 
more  than  anything  else,  is  transportation  facilities.  The  building 
of  railroads  in  Alaska  means  the  introduction  of  labor-saving  ma- 
chinery, cheaper  food  and  materials,  more  and  cheaper  labor,  and  a 
general  amelioration  of  the  stern  conditions  which  now  prevail ; 
and  their  introduction  will  immediately  be  followed  by  an  outflow 
of  wealth  far  beyond  our  expectations,  which  will  be  wrought  out 
from  the  abundance  of  low-grade  ores  or  placers,  and  from  the 
tailings  or  refuse  from  the  rich  diggings  of  the  past  years,  which 
cannot,  now  be  profitably  worked  and  are  necessarily  wasted. 

Capital  Abundant. 

Capital  is  abundant,  ready  and  anxious,  but  the  building  and 
operation  of  railroads  requires  coal  as  well  as  dollars.  The  prime 
necessity  of  Alaska,  therefore,  with  respect  to  railroad  construc- 
tion, is  the  opportunity  to  utilise  some  of  its  dormant  coal  reserve, 
not  necessarily  the  best  of  it,  but  even  the  lower  grades.  "Any  old 


THE    HIGH    GRADE    COALS    OF   ALASKA  333 

coal''  will  answer  where  none  is  at  present  available.  All  Alaska  coal 
lands  have  been  withdrawn  ffom  entry.  Coal  of  all  kinds  is  fairly 
abundant  and  well  distributed  throughout  the  territory,  but  under 
the  present  legal  restrictions  no  man  may  mine  it.  An  operator  of 
a  small  coal  mine  on  Cook's  Inlet  was  arrested  for  selling  to  other 
than  the  U.  S.  Revenue  vessels;  and  in  some  parts  of  the  District 
the  timber  is  being  rapidly  exhausted  for  fuel  purposes,  on  account 
of  the  scarcity  of  coal. 

Conservation  without  utilization  is  a  wrong  idea  and  a  sprag 
to  progress.  Most  of  the  Alaska  claimants  are  after  the  best  coal ; 
and  therefore,  in  accord  with  the  proverbial  wastefulness  of  the 
American  people;  the  present  aspect  of  the  coal  situation  in  Alaska, 
points  toward  the  speedy  consumption  of  the  small,  high-grade  part 
of  the  Alaska  coal  and  the  discarding  of  the  more  plentiful  supply 
of  medium  and  low-grade  fuels. 

Let  our  Congress,  therefore,  enact  its  new  laws  for  the  control 
of  this  question  with  full  knowledge  of  the  situation.  And  if  for- 
sooth, it  is  proposed  to  control  the  coal  industry  of  Alaska  through 
some  sort  of  leasehold  arrangement,  let  us  provide  a  high  per-ton 
royalty  for  the  relatively  small  quantity  of  high-grade  coal  we  pos- 
sess, and  a  lower  rate  for  the  medium  and  low-grade  coals;  thus 
arranging  the  royalties,  if  you  please,  on  a  sliding  scale  in  some 
manner  proportionate  to  the  percentage  of  fixed  carbon  contained 
in  the  coal ;  or  some  similar  plan  which  will  force  the  conservation 
of  the  very  important  high-grade  navy  fuels  for  the  higher  uses  of 
the  district  and  the  Nation,  to  which  they  are  adapted,  thus  in  a 
measure  compelling  the  mining  of  the  lower-grade  coals  for  the 
more  ordinary  local  purposes  necessary  to  the  development  of 
Alaska. 


Conservation  vs.  Encouragement. 

MARTIN    FISHBACK, 
EL    PASO,    TEXAS. 


Just  before  the  assassination  of  that  great  and  good  man, 
Abraham  Lincoln,  Schuyler  Colfax  left  Washington  to  cross  the 
continent.  As  Mr.  Lincoln  bade  him  farewell,  he  said: 

"I  want  you  to  make  a  speech  for  me  to  the  miners  you  may 
find  on  your  journey.  I  have  very  large  ideas  of  the  mineral 
wealth  of  our  Nation.  I  believe  it  practically  inexhaustible.  It 
abounds  all  over  the  Western  country,  from  the  Rocky  Mountains 
to  the  Pacific,  and  its  development  has  scarcely  commenced. 

"Now  the  rebellion  is  over  and  we  know  pretty  nearly  the 
amount  of  our  national  debt,  the  more  gold  and  silver  we  mine 
makes  the  payment  of  that  debt  much  easier.  I  am  going  to  en- 
courage that  in  every  way. 

"We  shall  have  hundreds  of  thousands  of  disbanded  soldiers, 
and  many  have  feared  that  their  return  home  in  such  great  num- 
bers might  paralyze  industry  by  suddenly  furnishing  a  greater  sup- 
ply of  laborers  tfyan  there  will  be  demand  for. 

"I  am  going  to  try  to  attract  them  to  the  hidden  wealth  of  our 
mountain  ranges,  where  there  is  room  for  all.  Immigration,  which 
even  the  war  has  not  stopped,  will  land  upon  our  shores  hundreds  of 
thousands  more  every  year  from  overcrowded  Europe.  I  intend 
to  point  them  to  the  gold  and  silver  that  waits  for  them  in  the  West. 

"Tell  the  miners  for  me  that  I  shall  promote  their  interest  to  the 
utmost  of  my  ability,  because  their  prosperity  is  the  prosperity  of 
the  Nation.  We  shall  prove  in  a  very  few  years  that  we  are  indeed 
the  Treasury  of  the  World." 

This  was  the  last  message,  almost  the  last  public  utterance  that 
came  from  the  inspired  lips  of  Mr.  Lincoln.  Those  prophetic  words, 
uttered  nearly  half  a  century  ago,  still  make  the  heart  of  a  miner 
glow.  How  different  from  the  "encouragement"  the  miner  and 
prospector  receives  from  a  paternal  an-d  beneficent  government  at 
the  present  time. 

The  purchase  of  Alaska  is  generally  accredited  to  the  far- 
seeing  enterprise  of  W.  H.  Seward,  Secretary  of  State  under  Lin- 
coln, and  afterward  under  Andrew  Johnson,  but  is  it  not  possible 
that  this  purchase  was  inspired  by  the  wisdom  of  Lincoln? 


CONSERVATION    VS.   ENCOURAGEMENT  335 

Anyway,  on  March  30,  1867,  the  transfer  of  581,107  square 
miles  was  made  to  the  United  States  for  the  sum  of  $7,200,000, 
known  as  Russian- America- Alaska ;  on  June  20,  1867-,  ratifications 
were  exchanged,  and  the  formal  transfer  made  to  Gen.  Rosseau,  at 
Sitka,  October  9,  1867. 

At  that  time  there  was  much  dissatisfaction  expressed  all 
over  the  country  at  this  high  expenditure  of  public  money  "for  this 
miserable  barren  waste  of  ice  and  snow,"  and  General  Sherman  said, 
in  speaking  of  it :  "Give  'em  seven  million  dollars  more  to  take  it 
back,  and  be.  thankful  to  get  off  so  cheap." 

Forty-four  years  have  come  and  gone  since  that  time,  and  we 
find  that  the  far-seeing  enterprise  of  Mr.  Seward  made  no  mistake ; 
that  before  even  one-fourth  of  this  vast  region  has  been  even 
partially  explored,  and  only  a  few  thousand  acres  surveyed,  Alaska 
has  returned  her  purchase  price  many  times  over ;  we  find  that 
"this  miserable  barren  waste  of  ice  and  snow"  has  since  1880 
yielded  a  mineral  production  of  $186,000,000,  out  of  which  $179,- 
000,000  is  represented  by  the  value  of  the  gold  output. 

Since  the  year  1800  about  3,000,000  square  miles  have  been 
added  to  American  territory  at  a  cost  of  approximately  ninety 
million  dollars,  all  of  which  the  output  of  American  gold  for  most 
any  one  year  since  1900  more  than  paid  for ;  Mr.  Lincoln's  prophecy 
has  been  well  sustained. 

Not  so  very  long  ago  some  wise  wag's  even  attempted  to  create 
an  over-production-of-gold  scare.  We  do  not  hear  any  more  about 
it  now.  Why?  Simply  because  the  rapid  increase  in  the  produc- 
tion of  gold  and  silver  of  a  few  years  ago  has  ceased.  It  is  a  safe 
prediction  that  in  a  very  few  years  more  the  pendulum  will  swing 
in  the  opposite  direction,  at  least  so  far  as  the  United  States  is  con- 
cerned— under  the  present  system  of  "conservation,  reservation  and 
withdrawals,"  or  whatever  name  one  chooses  to  call  it  by. 

The  present  standard  of  the  gold  and  silver  production  in 
America  is  kept  up  and  maintained  by  improved  metallurgical  meth- 
ods applied  to  low-grade  ores  and  dumps  at  old  mines  which  were 
previously  considered  unprofitable,  and  not  by  virtue  of  any  new 
discoveries.  By  a  little  mental  figuring  it  is  not  hard  to  see  the 
"beginning  of  the  end"  of  the  large  gold  and  silver  output  in  this 
country,  if  the  Government  persists  in  "conserving"  the  unex- 
plored mineral  districts  for  some  distant  future  generation. 

Of  course,  we  are  told  that  it  is  far  from  being  the  intention 
of  prohibiting  "legitimate  settling  and  prospecting" ;  contrariwise, 
the  Government's  desire  is  to  encourage  it,  and  all  that  sort  of  stuff ; 


336         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

but  the  fact  remains  that  all  prospecting  and  exploring  has  prac- 
tically ceased  throughout  the  entire  mountain  regions  of  the  West; 
the  oldtime,-  hardy,  intrepid  and  intelligent  prospector  has  been 
driven  out  of  the  field.  If  you  ask  him  why,  he  will  likely  tell  you 
that  he  does  not  propose  to  be  bulldozed  by  some  impertinent  forest 
ranger,  who  knows  less  about  minerals  than  the  horse  he  rides,  nor 
take  dictations  from  him  as  to  where  he  may  or  may  not  prospect. 

Forest  reserves  over  mineral  areas  the  prospector  does  not 
object  to;  the  average  prospector  has  more  regard  for  the  timber 
on  his  claim  than  the  Government  itself;  he  is  a  conservationist  by 
instinct;  what  he  does  object  to  are  the  intolerable  restrictions  to 
which  he  is  subjected,  and  he  has  quit  the  field  in  disgust. 

There  is  something  radically  wrong  with  the  system  as  now 
in  practice,  especially  with  reference  to  the  unexplored  mineral 
areas  in  the  Western  States.  In  a  very  few  years  this  unwise 
policy  will  be  ''brought  back"  with  a  vengeance  if  it  continues  along 
the  same  groove. 

Would  it  not  be  far  better  to  leave  each  State  to  work  out  its 
own  "conservation"  to  suit  its  own  peculiar  needs?  Anyway,  en- 
courage and  protect  the  pioneer  settler  and  prospector. 


Coal  and  Transportation  in  Alaska. 

BY  MAURICE  D.   LEEHEY, 
SKATTLE,   WASHINGTON. 


We  are  pleased  to  note  during  the  past  year  a  deeper  interest 
in  the  affairs  of  Alaska  throughout  the  United  States.  Much  that 
has  been  published  is  misinformation.  Some  half-truths  have  been 
told,  and  these  usually  constitute  the  most  dangerous  falsehoods. 
On  the  other  hand  much  truth  has  been  elucidated,  and  the  aroused 
interest  and  the  resultant  agitation  must  lead  to  a  better  understand- 
ing. The  Alaskans  are  Americans.  Practically  all  of  them  came 
directly  from  the  states,  and  every  state  in  our  union  is  represented 
in  Alaska  by  some  of  her  most  enterprising  sons  and  bravest  daugh- 
ters. Consequently,  the  Alaska  people  are  patrotic,  and  they  have 
exercised  for  years  a  patient,  philosophical  patriotism,  because  they 
have  confidence  in  the  honesty  of  the  American  people,  and  know 
that  when  the  American  people  are  fully  and  correctly  informed 
justice  will  be  done. 

The  Honorable  Walter  L.  Fisher,  Secretary  of  the  Interior,  ac- 
companied by  Dr.  Alfred  H.  Brooks,  of  the  U.  S.  Geological  Sur- 
vey, and  Dr.  Joseph  A.  Holmes,  Director  of  the  Bureau  of  Mines, 
visited  the  principal  ports  of  Southern  Alaska  last  August,  and 
made  such  an  investigation  of  conditions  as  the  limited  time  would 
permit.  Secretary  Fisher  impressed  all  with  his  ability  and  sin- 
cerity. His  pleasing  democratic  manner  made  friends  of  all 
Alaskans  whom  he  met.  However,  Alaska  has  had  several  visits  of 
cabinet  officers  and  congressional  committees  during-  the  past  few 
years  without  visible  results.  The  Administration  has  for  several 
years  recommended  legislation  with  reference  to  Alaska  without 
visible  results.  In  the  meantime  laws  applicable  to  Alaska  have 
been  suspended  by  the  withdrawal  of  public  lands  from  entry: 
Naturally,  Alaskans  are'  disposed  to  criticize  the  Administration 
quite  as  much  for  its  failure  to  proceed  under  existing  laws  as 
to  blame  Congress  for  the  failure  to  enact  new  legislation.  It  is 
popularly  understood  that  the  coal  question  is  the  most  important 
problem  in  Alaska.  This  is  not  entirely  true.  The  great  problem 
is  that  of  transportation,  and  the  coal  question  is  chiefly  important 
for  its  bearing  upon  transportation.  ^Alaska  requires  railroads  to  the 
interior,  and  it  is  manifest  that  these  railroads  will  not  be  built  until 
the  Alaska  coal  is  placed  upon  the  market. 


338         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

Coal  was  mined  in  Alaska  by  the  Russians  long  years  ago,  prob- 
ably soon  after  the  settlement  of  Sitka  and  Kodiak,  the  oldest 
towns  on  the  Pacific  coast  of  America,  whence  supplies  were 
shipped  to  California  and  along  the  Pacific  coast  before  San  Fran- 
cisco, San  Diego  or  Seattle  were  founded.  These  Russian  coal 
mines,  though,  never  became  of  commercial  importance,  and  our 
American  people  paid  no  attention  to  Alaska  coal  until  after  the 
gold  rush  to  Cook  Inlet  in  1896  and  to  the  Klondyke  still  later. 

The  general  coal  land  laws  of  the  United  States  were  ex- 
tended to  Alaska  on  June  6,  1900.  Prior  to  that  time  attempts  were 
made  to  locate  coal  lands  in  Alaska,  but  there  was  no  law  per- 
mitting the  same,  and  even  the  general  coal  land  act  of  1873  has 
been  inoperative  because  it  applies  only  to  surveyed  land,  and  the 
public  surveys  have  not  been  extended  to  Alaska.  After  another 
delay  of  four  years,  Congress  passed  the  act  of  1904,  which  pro- 
vides for  coal  land  locations  by  private  surveys.  Such  legislation 
was  urged  on  Congress  by  the  President's  message.  Congress 
acted,  and  on  April  26,  1904,  the  President  approved  the  law  now 
in  force  permitting  individual  entries  of  160  acres  of  coal  land  to 
be  designated  by  private  surveys  at  the  expense  of  the  applicant. 
About  i  ,000  coal  claims  were  located  under  this  act.  Some  300 
of  these  have  been  surveyed  at  the  sole  expense  of  the  claimants 
who  have  also  paid  into  the  United  States  Treasury  nearly  $400,000, 
but  so  far  not  a  single  patent  has  been  issued.  It  has  been  charged 
that  most  of  those  claims  are  invalid.  We  presume  that  only  the 
officials  of  the  general  land  office  have  sufficient  knowledge  to 
speak  of  all  entries,  but  we  do  know  of  certain  claims  which  are 
entirely  valid,  made  in  strict  compliance  with  the  law,  and  which 
should  have  been  patented  years  ago.  We  know  of  men  who  went 
into  both  the  Katalla  and  Matanuska  regions  and  spent  their  time 
and  money  in  the  utmost  good  faith,  strictly  complying  with  the 
law  in  its  every  detail.  Indeed,  some  of  these  men  have  actually 
lived  upon  their  claims  -during  all  these  weary  years  of  waiting. 
Such  applications  there  are  which  have  been  pending  for  four 
years  and  more,  and  yet  no  action  has  been  taken,  no  charges  filed, 
and  in  some  cases  not  even  the  slightest  suggestion  of  an  irregu- 
larity has  been  made,  although  during  all  of  these  years  a  score  of 
field  agents  have  been  at  work,  interviewing  claimants  and  other 
persons  who  might  have  some  knowledge,  and  employing  every 
means  of  a  skilled  detective  force  to  ascertain  possible  fraud  or 
irregularities. 


COAL    AND    TRANSPORTATION    IN    ALASKA  339 

Has  this  long  delay  been  caused  by  a  gigantic  conspiracy  to 
unlawfully  acquire  and  monopolize  the  Alaska  coal  fields?  Or,  was 
it  caused  by  another  conspiracy,  which  has  for  its  object  the  nulli- 
fication of  the  laws  solemnly  passed  by  Congress,  and  the  substitu- 
tion of  a  leasing  system  in  the  Alaska  coal  fields,  without  any 
regard  to  the  rights  of  those  people  who  proceeded  in  good  faith 
according  to  law? 

Why  the  Delay  f 

Thirty-one  months  after  President  Roosevelt  signed  the  act  of 
April  28,  1904,  that  same  President  issued  an  executive  order  with- 
drawing all  these  coal  lands  from  entry.  The  executive  order 
nullified  the  act  of  Congress.  The  order  was  so  sweeping  as  to 
even  suspend  action  upon  claims  already  filed,  and  the  register  and 
receiver  were  thus  compelled  to  refuse  to  file  notices  of  locations 
made  even  prior  to  the  withdrawal.  Some  months  later  the  order 
was  modified  so  as  to  permit  action  upon  existing  entries.  It  was 
admitted  that  patents  should  issue  to  valid  claims  located  between 
April  28,  1904,  and  November  12,  1906,  but  so  far  all  that  has 
been  done  is  to  file  charges  against  certain  claimants,  which  charges 
have  resulted  in  an  order  for  the  cancellation  of  one  group.  But, 
we  repeat,  there  are  many  applications  which  remain  pending  after 
all  these  years  without  any  action,  not  even  charges  filed  or  sug- 
gested. Why  this  long  delay  ?  Surely  the  illegal  acts  of  one  should 
not  entirely  prevent  action  upon  the  claims  of  another  against  whom 
no  charges  have  even  been  made.  Rather  was  not  this  delay  caused 
— and  is  it  not  continued,  in  furtherance  of  another  conspiracy  to 
force  a  leasing  system  upon  the  Alaska  fields. 

This  situation  is  the  more  aggravating  because  most  of  these 
particular  claimants  have  agreed  to  accept  patents  under  the  limita- 
tions of  the  act  of  May  28,  1906.  This  act  applies  only  to  claims 
located  prior  to  November  12,  1906,  the  date  of  the  President's 
withdrawal.  This  later  act  permits  the  consolidation  of  such  claims 
in  groups  of  not  to  exceed  2,560  acres,  and  was  intended  to  cure 
defects  which  might  have  resulted  from  the  location  of  a  group 
of  claims  in  common,  or  with  intention  to  combine  after  obtaining 
patents.  It  is  manifest  that  a  coal  mine  cannot  be  operated  upon 
160  acres.  Consequently,  many  of  these  claims  have  located  in 
groups  by  men  represented  perhaps  by  the  same  agent,  and  to  some 
extent  acting  jointly,  each  individual  however  locating  one  claim 
and  holding  it  independently,  but  having  in  mind  possibly  that 
some  plan  of  joint  action  might  be  adopted  after  the  issuance  of 
patents.  Congress  intended  to  validate  any  irregularities  in  such 


340         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

locations,  but  imposed  severe  conditions,  as  will  be  noted  by  Sec- 
tion 3  of  the  act  of  1908,  which  reads  as  follows : 

"That  if  any  of  the  lands  or  deposits  purchased  under  the  pro- 
visions of  this  Act  shall  be  owned,  leased,  trusteed,  possessed, 
or  controlled  by  any  device,  permanently,  temporarily,  directly, 
indirectly,  tacitly,  or  in  any  manner  whatsoever  so  that  they  form  part 
of,  or  in  any  way  effect  any  combination,  or  are  in  anywise  controlled 
by  any  combination  in  the  form  of  an  unlawful  trust,  or  form  the  sub- 
ject of  any  contract  or  conspiracy  in  restraint  of  trade  in  the  mining 
or  selling  of  coal,  or  of  any  holding  of  such  lands  by  any  individual, 
partnership,  association,  corporation,  mortgage,  stock  ownership,  or 
control,  in  excess  of  two  thousand  five  hundred  and  sixty  acres  in  the 
district  of  Alaska,  the  title  thereto  shall  be  forfeited  to  the  United 
States  by  proceedings  instituted  by  the  Attorney  General  of  the  United 
States  in  the  courts  for  that  purpose." 

This  is  certainly  the  most  stringent  anti-monopoly  clause  pos- 
sible to  frame  in  the  English  language.  But  three  and  one-half 
years  more  have  passed  since  this  drastic  legislation,  and  still  no 
action  has  been  taken.  Is  such  departmental  inaction  but  the  re- 
flection of  public  sentiment?  Perhaps  it  is.  Perhaps  it  but  ex- 
presses a  conviction  of  the  American  people  that  the  public  land 
system  which  gave  the  great  West  the  most  splendid  development 
in  the  history  of  the  world,  cannot  now  be  extended  to  Alaska ;  that 
the  enactment  by  Congress  to  do  so  was  a  mistake  for  which  the 
honest  coal  claimants  in  Alaska  must  suffer,  and  those  who  took 
their  little  all  of  health  and  goods  into  Alaska,  in  full  confidence  that 
the  laws  of  the  United  States  would  be  enforced,  must  suffer  loss 
because  they  had  too  much  faith  in  the  integrity  of  our  Govern- 
ment. Be  that  as  it  may,  it  is  unquestionably  a  fact  that  had  the 
same  policy  been  pursued  in  the  early  settlement  of  the  middle 
West  that  is  now  being  pursued  toward  Alaska,  the  buffalo  would 
still  be  king  of  the  plains.  Chicago  would  still  be  a  frontier  town, 
Kansas  City  would  be  a  mere  trading  post  at  the  edge  of  the  great 
American  desert,  and  the  now  splendid  cities  of  Denver  and  Minne- 
apolis would  not  even  be  names  upon  the  map. 

Danger  of  Monopoly  Exaggerated. 

Alaskans  are  in  full  sympathy  with  the  desire  of  the  people 
of  the  United  States  that  the  great  coal  fields  of  Alaska  shall  not 
pass  into  into  the  hands  of  a  private  monopoly;  to  be  exploited 
solely  for  private  gain.  We  believe,  though,  the  danger  of  such 
a  monopoly  in  Alaska  has  been  greatly  exaggerated.  In  fact,  we 
who  know  conditions  in  Alaska,  are  convinced  that  such  a  monopoly 
cannot  arise  under  existing  laws,  if  properly  enforced.  We  are  also 
interested  in  the  men  who  discovered  these  coal  fields  and  revealed 
their  wealth  to  the  Nation,  and  in  those  men  who  spent  their  time 
and  money  to  develop  and  prove  the  wealth  of  these  fields.  We 


COAL    AND    TRANSPORTATION    IN  -  ALASKA  341 

understand  that  the  act  of  1904  was  an  offer  by  the  Government, 
and  its  acceptance  by  the  bona  fide  locator  constitutes  a  contract 
between  him  and  the  Government,  and  we  are  confident  that  the 
American  people,  who  are  fair  and  honest  when  correctly  informed, 
will  insist  that  the  contract  be  kept. 

We  deplore  the  delay  which  has  operated  so  much  to  our  dis- 
advantage, caused  financial  loss  to  many  honest  men  and  women 
who  invested  perhaps  all  they  had  in  money,  labor,  health  and  enter- 
prise, and  gave  several  of  the  best  years  of  their  liyes,  relying  on 
this  contract  with  the  United  States.  We  r*efer  not  only  to  the 
honest  coal  claimants,  but  still  more  especially  to  the  far  more 
numerous  band  of  hardy,  enterprising  people  who  went  into  Alaska, 
and  iiave  no  direct  interest  in  the  coal  fields,  but  engaged  in  various 
other  lines  of  business,  relying  on  the  opening  of  these  coal  fields, 
and  upon  the  building  of  railroads  and  smelters,  to  which  the  use 
of  this  coal  is  an  absolute  essential.  It  is  in  this  way  that  the  great 
loss  to  Alaska  and  Alaskans  has  really  been  suffered.  Our  appeal 
is  for  justice,  not  merely  to  the  honest  coal  claimants,  however  few 
they  may  be,  but  also,  and  more  especially,  to  that  vast  body  of 
Alaskan  pioneers  who  invested  all  of  their  time  and  money,  labor 
and  sacrifice,  enterprise  and  energy,  in  trusting  confidence  that  the 
law  of  1904  would  be  fairly  executed.  Those  pioneers  are  indeed 
the  same  honest,  rugged,  sturdy  men  and  women  who  conquered 
the  West,  who  opened  the  coal  fields  and  iron  mines  of  Pennsyl- 
vania and  Ohio,  who  converted  the  prairies  of  the  Mississippi  val- 
ley into  a  blooming  garden,  who  have  conquered  the  plains  and 
tunneled  the  mountains  and  made  the  great  Northwest  yield  up  its 
treasure  of  mine  and  field.  These  same  men  have  gone  into  Alaska 
and  endured  the  hardships  and  privations  of  the  northland  in  an 
effort  to  open  up  that  country  in  whose  resources  they  have  such 
abundant  confidence.  Some  of  them  found  their  last  resting  place 
beneath  the  northern  lights ;  many  of  them  have  left  Alaska  dis- 
appointed and  disheartened,  broken  in  health  and  spirit,  while 
others  still  remain  in  the  desperate  struggle,  many  of  them  simply 
because  they  are  unable  to  get  away.  It  is  difficult  to  picture  the 
condition  of  these  disappointed  people  along  the  Alaska  coast,  and 
we  shall  not  attempt  it,  because  we  cannot  do  the  subject  justice  in 
the  first  place,  and  our  picture  would  be  deemed  overdrawn  if  we 
correctly  portrayed  it.  These  men  have  seen  public  officials,  sena- 
tors, congressmen  and  cabinet  officers,  visit  Alaska  and  depart  much 
impressed,  but  no  results  followed  their  visit.  Consequently,  it  is 
not  strange  that  many  of  those  who  welcomed  Secretary  Fisher  to 


342         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

Alaska  on  his  recent  trip,  expressed  doubt  as  to  whether  results 
would  follow  it. 

We  have  full  confidence  in  the  earnestness  and  sincerity  of  the 
able  Secretary  of  the  Interior.  His  work  is  of  the  constructive  type, 
and  we  feel  that  results  will  follow  his  visit.  He  made  it  quite 
clear  to  the  people,  however,  that  the  Alaska  coal  fields  will  not 
be  opened  under  the  existing  laws,  because,  four-fifths  of  the 
American  people  have  evidently  become  satisfied  that  the  existing 
laws  are  inadequate,  and  that  some  other  scheme  must  be  adopted 
for  Alaska.  Naturally,  we  feel  that  Alaska  should  not  be  made  an 
experiment  station  for  new  ideas.  At  least,  not  upon  this  coal 
question,  which  is  so  important  to  the  people  of  Alaska,  and  yet  so 
trifling  in  its  relation  to  the  great  public  question  as  to  the  future 
disposition  of  coal  lands  upon  our  public  domain. 
Mines  at  Tidewater. 

We  say  coal  is  important  to  Alaska  because  it  is  necessary  to 
transportation,  which,  after  all,  is  the  great  need  of  Alaska.  Stop 
to  think  of  it,  there  has  never  been  a  producing  mine  at  tidewater  on 
the  face  of  the  earth,  except  in  Alaska,  while  nearly  all  of  the 
producing  mines  of  Alaska  are  located  at  tidewater,  where  a  ship 
may  load  ore  from  the  bunkers.  Alaska  has  yielded  some  $200,- 
000,000  in  precious  metals,  practically  every  bit  of  which  has  been 
taken  from  places  within  sight  of  the  smoke  of  a  steamboat,  in- 
cluding, of  course,  the  placers  along  the  Yukon  River  and  its 
tributaries.  We  know  of  mineral  deposits  of  fabulous  wealth  in 
the  interior,  immense  areas  of  low-grade  placers,  rich  gold  quartz, 
and  mines  of  native  copper,  but  today  they  are  as  useless  to  us  as  if 
hidden  in  the  chasms  of  the  moon.  Transportation  is  required,  rail- 
roads must  be  built,  but  this  cannot  be  done  without  Alaska  coal. 
On  the  other  hand,  it  is  doubtful  if  there  is  a  market  for  much 
Alaska  coal  outside  of  Alaska.  Eastern  people  and  those  of  the 
middle  West  do  not  appreciate  that  there  is  plenty  of  coal  on  the 
Pacific  coast,  much  more  accessibly  located  than  that  of  Alaska, 
besides  fuel  oil  in  abundance,  and  the  most  marvelous  hydro-electric 
power  in  the  world.  Even  in  Alaska  the  Treadwell  mines  and  the 
Copper  River  Railroad  are  being  operated  by  California  fuel  oil, 
and  it  is  evident  that  Alaska  steaming  coal  has  little  demand  upon 
the  Pacific  coast  of  the  United  States  in  the  face  of  such  compe- 
tition. A  market  will  ultimately  be  made  for  some  Alaska  anthra- 
cite, and  the  Alaska  coking  coal  will  be  of  great  importance,  espe- 
cially in  the  treatment  of  the  low-grade  copper  ore  along  the  Alaska 
Coast.  The  United  States  Navy,  which  is  now  importing  coal  from 


COAL    AND    TRANSPORTATION    IN    ALASKA  343 

West  Virginia,  might  save  the  price  of  a  battleship  in  a  few  years 
by  using  Alaska  coal,  but  the  Alaska  fields  really  have  little  bearing 
upon  the  great  question  as  to  the  future  policy  for  the  disposition 
of  coal  lands  upon  the  public  domain  of  the  United  States. 

We  accept  the  notice,  however,  that  some  new  system  must  be 
adopted  in  Alaska,  and  consequently,  your  committee  has  given  this 
subject  mature  consideration.  Two  methods  have  been  suggested: 
one  a  leasing  system,  and  the  other,  Government  operation  of  the 
coal  mines. 

Any  system  for  placing  Alaska  coal  on  the  market  must  take 
the  element  of  transportation  into  careful  consideration,  and  the 
physical  condition  and  situation  of  these  properties  should  be 
understood  in  that  connection.  The  two  principal  fields  are  the 
Bering  river  and  the  Matanuska.  The  Bering  river  is  also  com- 
monly known  as  the  Katalla  field,  as  it  is  near  that  town.  A  few 
years  ago  the  Alaska  syndicate  began  the  construction  of  a  break- 
water at  Katalla  with  the  idea  of  developing  a  harbor  there,  but 
later  abandoned  the  project,  and  moved  its  terminals  to  Cordova, 
a  point  on  Prince  Williams  Sound,  from  which  the  Copper  River  & 
Northwestern  Railroad  has  been  built  easterly  across  the  Copper 
river  delta  and  thence  up  that  valley  to  the  Bonanza  copper  mine. 
A  branch  line  could  be  built  from  this  road  so  as  to  make  ,a  total 
haul  of  about  85  miles  from  the  center  of  these  fields  across  the 
Copper  river  delta  to  Cordova.  Much  has  been  said  recently  con- 
cerning the  merits  of  Controller  bay  as  a  harbor  for  the  Katalla 
fields.  Controller  bay  is  situated  about  15  miles  from  the  coal,  or 
about  25  miles  from  the  center  of  the  field,  and  has  the  advantage 
of  distance  and  easy  grade.  The  Government  charts  show  a  suffi- 
cient depth  of  water  in  Controller  bay,  but  the  navigable  channel  is 
small  and  can  be  reached  only  by  building  several  miles  of  trestle, 
over  the  mud  flats.  These  trestles  with  bunkers,  wharves 
and  terminal  facilities  at  deep  water,  will  be  expensive  to 
construct  and  still  more  expensive  to  maintain,  because  of  the  diffi- 
culty with  ice  coming  out  of  the  rivers  each  spring.  Then,  too,  the 
harbor  is  only  partially  protected  and  is  exposed  to  some  of  the 
most  dangerous  windstorms  that  visit  the  Alaska  coast.  The 
Alaska  syndicate,  financed  by  J.  P.  Morgan  &  Co.  and  Guggenheim 
&  Sons,  carefully  investigated  both  Controller  bay  and  Katalla, 
and  spent  perhaps  more  than  a  million  dollars  at  the  latter  place, 
but  finally  abandoned  both  places  for  Cordova.  There  is  no  doubt 
that  Controller  bay  is  available  as  a  harbor  for  some  portions  of  the 
year,  but  there  is  no  danger  of  a  monopoly  there  for  any  one  of  its 


344         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

several  miles  of  mud  flats  is  just  as  valuable  as  another,  and  we 
regard  the  judgment  of  the  Alaska  syndicate  as  expressing  the 
general  opinion  of  all  people  familiar  with  the  Alaska  coast. 

The  Matanuska  coal  field  can  be  reached  from  Seward,  on 
Resurrection  bay,  an  ideal  land-locked  harbor,  equal  to  any  on  the 
Pacific  coast.  The  coal  measures  in  the  Katalla  field  are  much 
broken,  and  require  extensive  development  work  to  determine  the 
most  economical  manner  of  mining  the  coal.  The  Matanuska  coal 
fields  are  reported  to  be  less  broken  but  have  the  disadvantage  of  a 
longer  haul.  Transportation  must  be  provided  to  each  field,  and 
this  includes  wharves,  bunkers  and  terminal  facilities,  which  must 
be  built  under  the  conditions  prevailing  along  the  Alaska  coast. 
These  items  must  be  considered  in  our  study  of  any  system  for 
the  opening  of  the  coal  fields. 

Application  of  Leasing  System  to  Alaska. 

A  leasing  system  has  been  suggested  and  vigorously  advo- 
cated. Your  committee  does  not  believe  that  any  of  the  proposed 
leasing  systems  are  favorable.  We  will  not  discuss  the  argument 
made  against  the  leasing  system  by  those  who  opposed  its  adoption 
in  the  United  States.  We  will  disregard  the  failure  of  the  leasing 
system  during  the  40  years  it  was  tried  in  the  lead  mines  of  Indiana 
and  Illinois  and  the  copper  mines  of  Michigan,  and  will  consider 
it  only  in  its  application  to  Alaska.  The  question  arises,  who  will 
provide  the  transportation,  wharves,  bunkers  and  terminal  facilities 
for  the  lessee  ?  Capital  must  be  procured,  and  hence  capital  must  be 
assured  security  and  a  reasonable  profit  on  the  investment.  Can 
anyone  enter  these  fields  upon  the  leasing  system  except  aggrega- 
tions of  great  wealth?  We  believe  not.  The  system  of  private 
ownership  enables  the  owner  of  the  ground  to  secure  capital  upon 
the  security  of  his  title,  but  can  this  capital  be  obtained  upon 
the  securities  of  a  mere  lessee  ?  This  is  manifestly  impossible  unless 
the  lease  be  very  liberal  in  area  and  terms.  The  lease  must  be  so 
liberal  in  this  respect  as  to  justify  a  large  investment  of  money, 
not  only  in  the  development  of  the  mine,  but  for  the  building  of  rail- 
roads, bunkers,  wharves  and  the  construction  of  colliers  or  ocean- 
going steamers.  We  believe  that  any  lease  so  liberal  as  this  will 
create  a  monopoly  in  the  Alaska  coal  fields  far  more  dangerous 
than  is  possible  under  any  system  of  "private  exploitation."  Per- 
haps the  Alaska  syndicate,  with  its  railroad  already  built  from 
Cordova  to  the  east  side  of  Copper  river,  can  afford  to  build  a 
branch  of  forty  miles  from  there  into  the  Katalla  field,  but  if  so, 
will  there  be  any  competition  in  transportation?  Will  any  com- 


COAL   AND    TRANSPORTATION    IN    ALASKA  345 

pany  be  justified  in  building  a  breakwater  at  Katalla  or  another  rail- 
road from  Controller  bay  into  these  fields,  and  provide  bunker 
and  terminal  facilities  with  several  miles  of  trestle  over  the  mud 
flats  to  be  maintained  under  such  adverse  conditions  for  operation 
during  a  portion  of  the  year,  and  undertake  all  of  this  simply  upon 
a  lease?  We  do  not  believe  capital  can  be  found  to  engage  in  so 
hazardous  an  enterprise,  unless,  as  we  repeat,  that  the  lease  be 
exceedingly  liberal  in  both  area  and  terms,  so  liberal  in  fact,  as  to 
be  more  dangerous  than  any  system  of  private  ownership. 

On  the  other  hand,  we  believe  that  if  patents  were  issued  to  the 
bona  fide  claimants,  to  those  men  who  accepted  the  invitation  of  the 
Government  and  fully  complied  with  its  laws,  we  believe  that  if  this 
were  done,  sufficient  lands  would  be  patented  to  encourage  the  build- 
ing of  railroads  from  points  on  Controller  bay  or  near  Katalla 
where  a  breakwater  is  possible,  but  it  is  the  opinion  of  your  com- 
mittee that,  if  the  leasing  system  be  applied,  the  transportation  will 
be  in  the  control  of  one  company.  We  regard  as  somewhat  signifi- 
cant the  advocacy  of  the  leasing  system  by  George  W.  Perkins,  who 
says  he  bases  his  information  upon  investigations  made  during  his 
visit  to  Alaska  in  1909,  while  he  was  a  partner  in  the  house  of  J.  P. 
Morgan  &  Co.  and  went  to  Alaska  to  inspect  the  properties  of  the 
Alaska  syndicate.  Your  committee  has  only  words  of  commenda- 
tion for  the  enterprise  of  the  Alaska  syndicate,  and  believes  it 
should  be  afforded  every  opportunity  to  realize  handsomely  on  the 
investment  of  its  millions  for  the  devejopment  of  the  Territory  of 
Alaska,  but  these  remarks  are  addressed  to  the  popularly  expressed 
fear  that  this  syndicate  will  control  Alaska.  We  do  not  charge  it 
with  such  designs,  but  we  do  believe  that  it  will  be  much  easier 
for  the  creation  of  a  monopoly  in  the  Alaska  coal  fields  under  a 
leasing  system  than  upon  a  system  of  private  ownership  with  the  op- 
portunities of  the  latter  for  competition  and  individual  initiation. 
The  same  conditions  apply  to  the  Matanuska  field.  A  railroad  has 
already  been  built  71  miles  in  that  direction  from  Seward,  but  con- 
struction work  has  been  suspended  ever  since  the  withdrawal  of  the 
Alaska  coal  lands.  The  Matanuska  coal  field  is  the  objective  point 
of  that  railroad.  If  we  assume  that  it  is  built  to  the  Matanuska 
field,  there  to  serve  the  lessees  of  coal  lands,  it  will  not  require  much 
effort  of  imagination  to  picture  the  possibility  of  favoritism  and  the 
creation  of  a  monopoly  in  those  fields.  It  is  true  that  the  Govern- 
ment may  regulate  railroad  rates,  but  will  competing  lessees  be  sat- 
isfied that  necessary  branches  or  spurs  will  be  built  to  connect  their 
mines,  and  that  cars  will  be  provided  when  necessary? 


346         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

We  are  also  opposed  to  making  of  Alaska  the  experiment  sta- 
tion for  new  ideas.  We  are  unable  to  find  where  the  leasing  system 
has  ever  been  successful  in  the  operation  of  coal  fields  under  any 
Government.  Leasing  is  perhaps  successful  to  some  extent  in  the 
coal  mines  of  Pennsylvania,  where  a  market  is  near  at  hand  and 
transportation  is  well  provided,  frequently  by  competing  lines,  and 
the  leases  are  from  individuals.  It  is  not  a  Government  leasing 
system. 

Leasing  Systems  in  Other  Countries. 

It  has  been  said  that  the  leasing  system  works  well  in  British 
Columbia,  Yukon  territory,  and  in  Australia  and  New  Zealand. 
We  can  only  repeat  the  statement  that  a  half-truth  is  frequently 
the  most  dangerous  and  misleading  falsehood.  The  system  in 
British  Columbia  is  in  no  sense  a  leasing  system  as  is  proposed  in  the 
United  States.  The  lessee  in  British  Columbia  may  obtain  a  lease 
of  sixty-four  hundred  acres  for  five  years,  with  a  renewal  for  three 
years,  but  is  privileged  at  any  time  during  the  lease,  or  within  three 
months  thereafter,  to  purchase  the  lands  at  $20  per  acre.  It  is  a 
significant  fact,  too,  that  no  mines  are  operated  in  British  Columbia 
under  the  leasing  system.  All  are  operating  upon  granted  lands. 
There  is  a  law  for  leasing  the  coal  lands  in  the  Yukon  territory. 
The  only  attempts  ever  made  to  operate  under  that  law  resulted  in 
failures.  There  is  not  a  single  coal  mine  operated  in  the  Yukon 
territory  upon  a  lease  from  the  Government.  In  a  similar  man- 
ner the  laws  of  Australia  and  New  Zealand  provide  for  private  own- 
ership at  the  option  of  the  lessee.  It  is  reported  that  much  coal  is 
mined  there  under  a  leasing  system,  but  that  is  because  the  operators 
do  not  find  it  necessary  to  exercise  the  option  given  them  to  pur- 
chase the  land.  They  are  given  that  option,  however,  and  are  thus 
afforded  the  security  of  private  ownership  whenever  they  see  fit  to 
exercise  the  privilege.  No  such  system  has  been  proposed  for 
Alaska.  None  of  the  leasing  bills  introduced  in  Congress  permit 
the  lessee  ever  to  acquire  title  to  the  land.  The  Robinson  bill  now 
pending  before  Congress  even  provides  for  only  a  portion  of  the 
royalty  upon  coal  mines  in  Alaska  to  be  expended  in  the  territory, 
and  the  balance  is  to  be  turned  into  the  treasury  of  the  United 
States.  It  is  a  rank  injustic  to  compel  the  residents  of  Alaska  to 
pay  a  royalty  into  the  treasury  of  the  Unite'd  States  upon  the  coal 
they  consume.  Why  not  a  similar  royalty  from  the  consumers  of 
coal  elsewhere?  The  consumers  of  Pennsylvania  coal  would  object 
to  paying  such  a  royalty  to  the  Federal  Government,  and  the  con- 
sumers in  Alaska  are  entitled  to  urge  the  same  objections. 


COAL    AND    TRANSPORTATION    IN    ALASKA  347 

Poor  old  Alaska  has  surely  had  quite  enough  of  the  leasing 
system.  It  was  leased  by  Russia  from  1799  unt^  l$&7  to  the 
Russian-American  Company.  That  company  was  the  absolute  lord 
and  master,  and  its  leasehold  sovereignty  absolutely  prevented  devel- 
opment. Fortunately  nobody  was  lured  there  under  false  promises. 
Only  those  went  there  who  did  so  for  the  Russian-American  Com- 
pany. A  leasing  system  was  not  inflicted  upon  honest,  hardy 
pioneers  as  is  now  proposed  by  the  American  Government.  For- 
tunately for  the  United  States,  Alaska  was  not  colonized  or  settled 
by  the  Russians.  Their  leasing  system  prevented  it.  Otherwise 
the  Russian  people  would  have  so  well  developed  Alaska  by  1867 
that  the  United  States  could  not  have  bought  it  for  two  cents  an  acre, 
with  its  wonderful  fisheries  and  a  fur  seal  herd  of  6,000,000  thrown 
into  the  bargain.  The  first  thing  we  did,  however,  was  to  lease  that 
seal  herd  to  a  company  which  in  forty  years  made  a  net  profit  of 
$5>738,ooo  and  depleted  the  herd  to  about  75,000.  In  the  meantime, 
the  United  States  Government  spent  more  money  in  patroling  the 
seal  islands  than  it  obtained  from  royalties  on  the  lease,  and  Alaska 
got  absolutely  nothing,  not  a  cent  in  taxation,  not  a  lighthouse-,  not 
a  schoolhouse,  not  as  much  as  a  flagpole.  Now,  the  United  States 
Government  has  gone  into  the  sealing  business  itself,  and  has  already 
begun  to  make  a  profit.  But  this  kind  of  talk  may  lead  us  to  advo- 
cate the  building  of  railroads  in  Alaska  and  the  operation  of  coal 
mines  there  by  the  Government. 

The  continued  withdrawal  of  the  Alaska  coal  lands  from  the 
operation  of  existing  laws  is  doubtless  an  expression  of  public  senti- 
ment throughout  the  states.  We  desire  something  done  and  we 
believe  the  American  people  desire  something  done  to  make  the 
Alaska  coal  immediately  available,  but  above  all,  and  first  of  all, 
transportation  is  absolutely  necessary.  The  withdrawal  of  the 
coal  lands,  whether  wise  or  otherwise,  is  solely  responsible  for  the 
interruption  of  railway  building  in  Alaska.  If  the  Government  will 
not  enforce  existing  laws,  if  the  present,  inaction  is  to  continue 
in  the  Alaska  coal  field,  or  if  some  new  system  is  to  be  tried  there, 
then  the  Government  of  the  United  States  should  either  build  rail- 
roads in  Alaska  or  guarantee  the  railroad  bonds  for  a  private 
enterprise. 

Government  Should  Proznde  Railroads. 

The  Government  should  provide  railroads  in  Alaska.  There 
is  ample  reason  for  doing  so  entirely  independent  of  the  coal  ques- 
tion. After  all,  the  coal  is  important  principally  in  its  bearing  upon 
transportation.  If  the  Government  controls  the  transportation  of 


348         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

the  Alaska  coal  from  mines  to  market,  or  at  least  from  mines  to  sea- 
board where  steamship  competition  will  be  possible,  then  the  Gov- 
ernment can  most  effectually  prevent  any  monopoly  in  the  Alaska 
coal  fields.  Indeed,  a  reasonable  leasing  system  might  be  then 
feasible,  but  not  otherwise.  If  the  Government  will  provide  the  rail- 
ways, bunkers  and  terminal  facilities,  and  thus  assure  transporta-* 
tion  at  fair  rates  from  mines  to  market,  capital  might  be  justified  in 
mining  some  Alaska  coal  upon  a  leasing  system.  We  repeat,  that 
sound  reasons  exist  for  Government  construction  of,  or  aid  to,  rail- 
roads in  Alaska,  entirely  independent  of  the  coal  question,  and  this 
brings  us  to  the  consideration  of  the  greater  problem  of  the  develop- 
ment of  Alaska. 

The  future  of  Alaska  depends  upon  the  development  of  the 
gold  and  copper  mines  and  the  low-grade  placers  of  the  great  in- 
terior, and  the  agricultural  development  of  the  valleys  which  is 
sure  to  follow.  These  portions  of  Alaska  are  in  the  same  latitude  as 
Norway,  Sweden  and  Finland.  The  cities  of  Seward  and  Cor- 
dova in  Alaska,  Christiana  in  Norway,  Stockholm  in  Sweden  an<l 
St.  Petersburg  in  Russia,  are  within  a  few  miles  of  the  same  paral- 
lel of  latitude.  The  agricultural  areas  are  as  much  larger  and  will 
become  as  much  more  important  than  the  combined  agricultural 
areas  of  Norway,  Sweden,  Finland  and  Northern  Russia  as  the 
Japan  current  in  the  Pacific  is  larger  and  more  influential  than  the 
gulf  stream  in  the  Atlantic.  However,  transportation  must  be 
provided  before  these  agricultural  valleys  can  be  settled,  and  the 
farmers  must  be  encouraged  by  the  local  market  which  will  be 
afforded  by  the  development  of  her  mines.  The  Government  should 
build  railroads  more  cheaply  for  it  can  sell  its, 3%  bonds  at  par, 
while  a  private  corporation  must  sell  its  5%  or  6%  bonds  at  a  dis- 
count. The  private  corporation  must  at  least  earn  its  fixed  charges, 
while  the  Government  can  afford  to  make  lower  rates  and  even 
operate  at  a  loss  during  a  few  years  to  encourage  the  great  de- 
velopment which  will  follow  and  which  will  more  than  justify 
the  investment.  Then,  too,  development  will  proceed  more  rapidly 
ahead  of  railway  construction  by  the  Government  whenever  a  route 
has  been  selected.  Capital  can  then  be  induced  to  immediately  be- 
gin the  development  of  mines  in  the  interior,  and  homesteaders  will 
settle  in  advance  of  the  construction  of  such  mines,  because  of  the 
assurance  of  the  Government  that  the  road  will  be  built,  while  in 
the  case  of  private  corporations,  with  the  long  record  of  receiver- 
ships which  have  attended  such  pioneer  railroads,  both  in>  the 
United  States  and  Alaska,  it  will  be  necessary  to  see  the  smoke  of 


COAL    AND    TRANSPORTATION    IN    ALASKA  349 

the  engine  along  the  route  before  capital  will  be  justified  in  making 
any  heavy  expenditures  in  the  development  of  the  interior.  Rail- 
roads built  in  Alaska,  and  gradually  extended  from  year  to  year, 
will  shorten  each  year  the  whiter  routes  to  the  interior  and  on  to 
Nome,  and  will  justify  the  construction  of  road  houses  an-d  even 
villages  along  the  line  of  such  route,  affording  inns  for  the  trav- 
eler, and  providing  a  development  in  advance  of  railway  construc- 
tion which  will  make  the  transportation  routes  the  more  quickly 
profitable. 

Coke  Supply  Important. 

Another  item  of  immense  importance  is  the  assurance  of  an 
adequate  supply  of  coke  at  a  reasonable  cost.  Smelters  and  matting 
plants  would  then  be  built  along  the  Alaska  coast  for  the  treatment 
of  low-grade  copper  ores,  which  really  have  more  metal  contents 
than  the  low-grade  copper  ores  of  Montana  and  other  states. 
These  ores  exist  in  infinite  variety  all  along  the  Alaska  coast.  De- 
sirable blends  of  ore  can  be  brought  together  at  different  places 
and  a  copper  matte  produced  that  will  stand  shipment  around  the 
world,  if  only  an  assured  supply  of  coke  be  provided  at  a  reasonable 
price.  The  smelter  at  Hadley,  Alaska,  paid  from  $22  to  $30  a  ton 
for  coke,  and  even  then  operated  successfully  while  copper  was 
commanding  upwards  of  15  cents.  With  Alaska  coke  at  $8  per  ton, 
the  operation  of  such  a  smelter  would  be  possible,  even  at  the  pres- 
ent low  price  of  copper.  Only  the  Government  can  give  a  satisfac- 
tory assurance  of  such  a  supply  of  coke  at  a  fixed  reasonable  price. 

We  view  with  favor  the  agitation  for  Government  aid  in  some 
form  for  railroads  in  Alaska.  We  note  with  satisfaction  the  in- 
terest which  has  been  aroused  in  the  Alaska  question.  It  leads  us 
to  take  a  more  optimistic  view  as  to  the  possibilities  of  the. imme- 
diate future.  We  believe  that  the  system  of  private  ownership  which 
encouraged  individual  initiation,  and  gave  the  great  West  such  a 
magnificent  growth  and  development  as  was  never  equaled  else- 
where in  the  history  of  the  world,  should  not  be  lightly  cast  aside 
for  new  experiments  in  Alaska,  in  that  land  of  distance  and  diffi- 
culties, and  under  conditions  where  large  rewards  must  be  offered 
both  to  capital  and  labor.  But  we  realize  the  sentiment  of  the 
American  people,  and  in  deference  to  that  sentiment  we  earnestly 
recommend  that  Government  aid  be  extended  to  transportation  in 
Alaska,  either  by  the  direct  construction  of  railroads  by  the  Gov- 
ernment, or  by  guaranty  of  the  securities  of  private  railroads  to  be 
operated  under  reasonable  Government  control.  With  such  a  sys- 
tem provided,  we  believe  it  matters  little  whether  the  coal  be  mined 


350         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

by  the  Government  or  by  private  interest  upon  a  leasing  system  or 
otherwise. 

There  still  remains  the  element  of  justice  to  those  men  who  are 
entitled  to  patents  under  existing  laws.  Their  rights  should  be 
speedily  determined.  This  is  but  simple  justice  to  them  and  the 
other  people  who  have  invested  their  money  in  good  faith  relying 
upon  the  promise  of  this  great  Government  contained  in  its  land 
laws,  and  believing  that  such  laws  would  be  equitably  enforced. 

Indeed  it  will  be  necessary  to  determine  the  right  of  existing 
claimants  before  the  coal  lands,  in  the  Katalla  field  at  least,  will 
be  available  for  the  operation  of  any  other  system,  for  manifestly, 
nothing  can  be  done  upon  the  lands  heretofore  located  until  the 
rights  of  the  present  locators  have  been  determined. 

Alaskans  have  a  common  interest  with  the  mining  men  of  the 
states  in  all  that  pertains  to  the  industry,  and  are  in  full  sympathy 
with  the  splendid  work  of  the  American  Mining  Congress,  but  we 
have  seen  fit  to  discuss  only  the  coal  and  transportation  questions 
which  are  so  vital  to  Alaska  and  the  entire  Pacific  coast,  both  in 
principle  and  economics. 


The  Alaskan  Coal  Situation. 

BY    FALCON    JOSLIN, 
FAIRBANKS,    ALASKA. 


The  Alaska  coal  situation  and  things  in  relation  to  the  govern- 
ment of  Alaska,  seem  at  this  time  to  be  one  of  the  most  vital  sub- 
jects that  the  American  people  are  considering.  All  over  the  United 
States  this  subject  is  holding  the  attention  of  the  American  people, 
and  I  firmly  believe  most  properly.  When  the  people  understand 
the  situation  I  believe  that  it  will  be  properly  and  justly  solved. 
Our  great  difficulty  is  to  get  a  fair  understanding.  The  Alaska  coal 
question  is  now  considered  to  be  a  most  tangled  and  difficult  sub- 
ject, and  yet,  gentlemen,  I  think  the  problems  are  comparatively 
simple.  Everything  that  is  not  understood  is  obscure,  and  complex, 
and  difficult,  but  when  understood  it  becomes  plain  and  definite. 

I  live  in  Fairbanks,  Alaska.  It  is  nearly  5,000  miles  from  Wash- 
ington city.  I  have  recently  traveled  from  there  here,  and  it  took 
me  25  days  to  reach  Seattle,  the  nearest  American  port  from  Fair- 
banks. I  could  have  gone  from  Washington  city  to  St.  Petersburg 
and  back  in  less  time  and  with  a  great  deal  more  comfort.  That 
is  significant  only  because  it  shows  how  extremely  bad  our  trans- 
portation is;  how  remote  the  country  is,  and  therefore  the  great 
difficulty  of  getting  a  correct  knowledge  of  what  it  needs.  I  have 
been  in  Alaska  and  in  the  Yukon  territory  adjoining  it  for  some 
fourteen  years.  In  the  Yukon  territory  I  was  foolish  enough  to 
undertake  to  develop  a  coal  mine.  I  bought  from  the  Canadian 
Government  400  acres  of  coal  land  at  the  price  of  $10  an  acre,  the 
same  price  that  the  Government  fixed  upon  the  Alaskan  coal  lands. 
I  tried  to  buy  something  like  1,000  acres  more  because  when  you 
undertake  to  open  a  coal  mine  you  have  got  to  have  a  big  tract ;  your 
investment  is  heavy.  I  was  not  able  to  buy  the  additional  thousand 
acres,  because  about  that  time  the  government  in  Canada  hit  upon 
the  theory  of  leasing  the  coal  lands,  as  we  are  now  considering  here. 
Though  my  application  to  purchase  had  been  filed,  it  was  treated  as 
not  a  vested  right,  and  it  was  required  that  I  should  take  a  lease  of 
the  land.  Having  already  started  the  enterprise  and  having  in- 
vested too  large  an  amount  to  draw  out,'  I  was  obliged  to  take  the 
lease  and  did  take  it.  I  believe  that  is  the  only  lease  that  has  ever 
been  granted  in  the  Yukon  territory  of  Canada  to  this  dav.  T  would 


352         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

not  have  taken  it,  nor  any  man  associated  with  me  would  have  con- 
sidered it  for  a  moment,  except  under  practical  compulsion.  Yet 
the  coal  leasing  law  of  the  Yukon  is  cited  as  an  example  to  be  fol- 
lowed in  Alaska. 

The  leasing  law  of  the  Yukon  is  liberal,  compared  with  the 
leasing  bills  for  Alaska  that  have  been  introduced  in  Congress,  but 
it  certainly  cannot  be  cited  to  prove  the  value  of  a  leasing  system. 
In  order  to  illustrate  the  working  of  the  coal  land  law  in  Alaska,  I 
will  relate  my  own  experience  with  it. 

Beginning  in  1905,  I  have  built  in  the  interior  of  Alaska  at  Fair- 
banks, a  narrow-gauge  railroad  about  45  miles  long,  extending  from 
the  Tanana  river  to  the  gold  mines  adjacent.  I  may  say  there  is 
practically  no  development  anywhere  in  that  territory  except  within 
30  to  50  miles  of  the  rivers  or  the  sea  coast.  Because  there  is  no 
transportation,  ninety  per  cent  of  the  territory  is  absolutely  inac- 
cessible. Until  better  transportation  than  that  can  be  provided  by 
the  rivers  and  by  the  sea  coast,  the  country  will  still  remain  unde- 
veloped. 

'  Vast  Coal  Field  in  Tanana  Valley. 

There  is  a  great  coal  field  in  the  Tanana  valley,  some  50  miles 
south  of  Fairbanks.  It  is  an  enormous  coal  field  both  in  area  and 
the  thickness  of  seams.  There  are  coal  veins  that  are  exposed  50 
to  loo  feet  thick,  six  or  seven  successive  veins,  one  above  the  other. 
They  don't  require  any  exploring  whatever.  You  can  look  at  them 
and  see  coal  enough  to  supply  many  times  more  than  the  community 
could  use  in  years.  This  coal  was  discovered  fifteen  years  or  more 
ago,  but  of  course  cannot  be  used  until  a  railroad  is  built  to  it.  That 
coal  field  lies  across  the  river  from  Fairbanks  to  the  south  about 
50  miles,  the  nearest  point  to  us.  To  reach  it  we  should  have  to 
cross  the  river  and  build  about  50  miles  of  railroad.  Four  or  five 
years  ago  a  prospector  came  into  my  office  and  said  that  he  had 
discovered  some  coal  on  the  north  bank  of  the  river  and  within 
thirty  miles  of  Fairbanks ;  that  it  could  be  easily  mined  and  carried 
down  to  the  town  in  barges ;  and  that  it  lay  so  close  to  the  bank  of 
the*  river  that  it  would  be  immediately  available.  We  were  using 
$20,000  to  $30,000  worth  of  wood  annually  on  the  railroad  and  the 
community  was  using  probably  eighty  thousand  cords  of  wood  an- 
nually at  a  cost  of  from  $9  to  $15  per  cord.  I  had  had  some  experi- 
ence in  the  matter  of  mining  of  coal  in  Canadian  Yukon  territory. 
I  knew  with  approximate  accuracy  how  much  coal  could  be  sold 
in  that  community  and  what  price  could  be  obtained  for  it.  I  knew 
that  about  20,000  tons  of  coal  a  year  could  be  sold  at  that  place  at 


THE    ALASKAN    COAL    SITUATION  353 

about  $15  per  ton.  Coal  at  this  price  would  be  about  half  the  cost 
of  wood  at  the  prevailing  prices.  Of  course  the  community  was 
then  growing  fast,  so  the  market  would  increase  with  the  growth 
of  population.  Also  it  was  plain  that  when  there  was  a. larger  ton- 
nage produced,  it  could  be  sold  cheaper. 

When  the  prospector  told  me  of  the  coal  vein,  I  said  at  once 
that  the  coal  would  be  important,  and  with  him  began  to  plan  that 
we  should  acquire  some  of  the  coal  land  with  the  view  of  opening  a 
mine.  I  began  to  look  up  the  law,  and  found  that  there  was  a  well- 
expressed,  clearly-defined  coal  land  law  providing  that  an  individual 
could  purchase  160  acres  of  coal  lands  from  the  Government  at  the 
rate  of  $10  an  acre.  The  law  was  printed  and  published  in  pam- 
phlet form  by  the  interior  department  at  Washington  and  there 
were  a  lot  of  regulations  and  instructions  printed  in  the  pamphlet 
to  guide  and  assist  one  who  might  desire  to  purchase  coal  lands. 

The  first  step  as  provided  toward  acquiring  coal  land  was  to 
mark  out  the  land  you  wanted  on  the  ground ;  that  is,  set  up  stakes, 
at  the  corners  of  your  claim  and  chop  out  the  lines  around  it.  This 
is  called  locating.  If  the  land  had  been  surveyed,  this  would  not 
have  been  necessary  for  you  could  then  locate  your  claim  on  a  map 
and  describe  it  as  such  and  such  a  quarter  section.  But  there  was 
no  surveyed  land  in  Alaska  and  so  it  must  be  located  by  the  appli- 
cant. When  it  was  located,  the  applicant  was  required  to  file  an 
application  to  purchase  in  the  land  office  describing  the  ground  as  he 
had  located  it.  When  this  was  done  that  particular  piece  of  land  was 
yours,  provided  you  should  do  the  further  things  required  by  the 
law.  The  further  things  required  to  be  done  were  that  you  must 
open  a  coal  vein  and  develop  a  coal  mine,  thus  proving  the  land  to 
be  coal  land.  You  must  also  have  the  tract  surveyed  by  a  govern- 
ment surveyor,  but  at  your  own  expense  and  you  must  file  a  map 
in  the  land  office  of  the  survey. 

Price  of  Coal  Lands. 

The  law  allowed  you  three  years  after  you  located  your  claim  in 
which  to  open  and  develop  a  coal  mine  on  it,  survey  it  and  file  your 
map.  Then  you  were  to  pay  the  land  office  $10  an  acre  for  it  and 
thereupon  the  law  said  that  you  should  have  a  patent  or  a  deed 
from  the  United  States  Government  for  the  land. 

This  was  and  is  a  perfectly  plain,  sensible  and  reasonable  law. 
We  thought  the  price  of  $10  per  acre  a  pretty  stiff  price.  It  seemed 
to  us  that  the  Government  might  well  give  enough  of  that  coal 
land  to  anyone  who  would  open  a  mine  and  work  it  for  it  was  en- 
tirely worthless  as  it  lay  undeveloped. 


354         PROCEEDINGS   AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

Coal  lands  can  be  bought  at  this  day  from  private  owners  in 
Tennessee  and  Kentucky  and,  in  fact,  in  every  coald  field  in  the 
United  States  at  $10  an  acre  and  the  Alaska  coal  lands  should  be 
cheaper.  They  are  so  far  from  the  market  and  there  are  no  rail- 
roads to  haul  the  coal.  Besides,  this  particular  coal  was  a  soft  coal 
of  poor  quality.  Yet  it  would  be  far  superior  to  the  wood  we  were 
using  and  it  seemed  that  a  mine  could  be  opened  there  with  some 
chance  of  mining  and  selling  the  coal  at  a  profit,  and  without  any 
great  amount  of  capital. 

We  concluded  that  each  of  us  would  take  up  and  locate  160 
acres. 

This  would  not  be  a  large  enough  tract  to  open  a  coal  mine. 
For  you  see  a  tunnel  and  haulage  way  in  a  coal  mine  may  easily  be 
a  mile  or  two  in  length  and  if  somebody  should  locate  the  ground 
around  you,  you  could  not  extend  your  tunnel  without  coming  into 
adjoining  claims. 

We,  therefore  planned  to  have  various  other '  friends  and  ac- 
quaintances locate  adjoining  claims  so  that  together  we  should  have 
a  tract  of  land  big  enough  to  open  a  good  mine  and  which  could 
be  worked  for  a  number  of  years  without  being  worked  out. 

We  went  to  a  lawyer's  office  to  have  the  proper  location  notices 
and  application  papers  drawn  and  there  we  were  told  that  the  coal 
land  law  had  been  suspended  and  that  we  could  not  buy  coal  lands 
in  Alaska  any  more.  When  we  wanted  to  know  why  and  for  what 
reason  we  could  find  none  except  that  on  November  12,  1906,  the 
President  of  the  United  States  had  issued  an  order  to  all  the  officers 
of  the  various  land  offices  directing  them  to  accept  no  more  appli- 
cations to  purchase  coal  land. 

There  was  nothing  in  the  law  anywhere  that  gave  the  Presi- 
dent any  authority  to  do  this,  nor  was  there  anything  in  the  general 
law,  or  in  the  constitution,  authorizing  the  President  to  suspend 
a  law,  but  he  did  it.  The  Constitution  gives  the  President  the 
power  to  veto  a  bill  before  it.  becomes  a  law,  but  after  it  becomes 
a  law,  there  is  no  authority  in  him  to  suspend  it.  On  the  contrary, 
the  Constitution  declares  that  the  President  shall  see  that  the  laws 
be  faithfully  executed. 

Congress,  of  course,  can  repeal  a  law  or  amend  it,  or  modify 
it,  but  the  President's  sole  business  is  to  execute  it. 
Result  of  Executive  Order. 

The  law  of  the  land  with  reference  to  the  sale  of  coal  lands 
in  Alaska  was  abrogated  by  that  order  and  the  register  and  the 
receiver  at  the  land  office  would  not  accept  our  applications  to 


THE   ALASKAN    COAL    SITUATION  355 

purchase  the  land.  They  obeyed  the  order  of  the  President  rather 
than  obey  the  law  of  the  land.  We  had  no  power  to  compel  them 
to  accept  our  applications. 

That  is  one  of  the  great  iniquities  of  the  land  laws.  You 
have  no  recourse  to  the  courts.  The  action  of  the  land  depart- 
ment is  final. 

We  had  to  give  up  the  effort  to  open  a  coal  mine,  there.  The 
law  of  the  land  was  nullified  by  the  order  of  the  President.  That 
coal  land  is  conserved  and  that  community  has  continued  to  burn 
wood  to  this  day — sixty  to  eighty  thousand  cords  a  year. 

I  will  show  you  clearly  how  the  President's  order  nullified  the 
law: 

It  has  been  a  custom  for  many  years  when  a  certain  tract  of 
public  land  was  needed  by  the  Government  for,  say,  a  military  post 
or  a  lighthouse  or  a  telegraph  station,  or  an  Indian  school,  or  some 
other  use,  the  President  has  issued  an  order  withdrawing  the  speci- 
fied tract  for  the  specific  purpose  required.  For  you  see  all  of  the 
public  lands  are  for  sale  and  always  have  been,  under  one  law  or 
another  until  this  absurd  idea  of  conservation  arose. 

Now,  if  the  President  had  done  this  in  reference  to  Alaska, 
there  could  have  been  no  reason  to  object.  For  instance,  if  he 
had  withdrawn  from  sale,  say,  5,000  acres  of  coal  land  in  each 
known  coal  field  for  the  use  of  the  navy  and  described  the  tract 
withdrawn,  the  other  land  would  have  remained  open  for  sale  and 
the  law  would  have  been  preserved.  But  this  was  not  what  was 
done  in  reference  to  the  Alaska  coal  land. 

That  order  just  swept  away  and  "withdrew"  from  sale  ALL 
the  coal  lands  in  Alaska.  It  was  a  complete  abrogataion  of  the  law 
of  the  land  on  that  subject. 

Mr.  Roosevelt  has  recently  written  that  it  was  the  criminal 
neglect  of  Congress  that  has  stopped  the  development  of  Alaska, 
and  Mr.  Pinchot  said  the  other  day  that  Congress  was  responsible 
for  the  throttling  of  Alaska.  I  say  that  it  was  the  criminal  usurpa- 
tion of  authority  by  the  President  of  the  United  States  that  caused 
the  trouble — nothing  else.  (Applause.) 

That  coal  land  law  was  a  good  law.  It  was  never  repealed  by 
Congress,  but  Mr.  Roosevelt  repealed  it  by  an  order.  And  it  stands 
so  to  this  day,  confirmed  now  by  another  order  by  his  successor  in 
office  to  whom  he  bequeathed  his  policies. 

Why,  gentlemen,  think  of  it!  That  coal  land  law  has  been  on 
the  statute  books  over  seven  years.  More  than  a  thousand  men 
made  their  locations  of  coal  land  and  filed  their  applications  to 


356         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

purchase  before  that  order  suspending  the  law  was  made  and  not 
a  single  one  of  all  that  thousand  applicants  has  got  a  deed.  More 
than  two  hundred  of  them  went  so  far  as  to  survey  their  claims 
and  pay  for  them  and  the  Government  has  their  money.  More 
than  $320,000  has  the  Government  taken  for  the  purchase  of  coal 
land  and  not  a  man  has  got  his  deed.  The  Government  has  the 
money  and  the  land  also  and  keeps  it. 

There  is  no  telling  how  many  applications  would  have  been 
filed  if  the  law  had  not  been  nullified.  I  would  certainly  have  ap- 
plied and  no  doubt  many  others,  but  we  were  deprived  of  our  rights 
under  the  law  by  the  arbitrary  and  unlawful  order  of  the  President 
of  the  United  States. 

We  had  the  right,  as  American  citizens,  that  the  laws  should 
be  faithfully  executed,  but  the  law  has  been  faithfully  throttled 
instead. 

Question  Concerns  Nation. 

When  that  coal  law  of  1904  was  passed  by  Congress,  it  was 
laid  before  Mr.  Roosevelt  as  President  for  his  approval.  He  could 
then  have  vetoed  it.  But  he  did  not.  He  approved  it.  He  must 
have  thought  it  a  good  land  law  then.  But  two  years  later  he 
changed  his  mind  and  abrogated  it.  I  tell  you,  gentlemen,  this  con- 
cerns the  whole  people  of  the  United  States  as  well  as  the  people 
of  Alaska,  for  if  one  law  can  be  trifled  with  by  the  executive  in 
that  way,  any  other  law  that  pertains  to  this  country  may  be  abro- 
gated in  the  same  way. 

It  is  difficult,  gentlemen,  extremely  difficult  for  one  who  has 
felt  the  pinch  and  the  injury  of  these  orders,  as  I  have,  to  speak  with 
patience  and  without  feeling  about  it. 

We  all  know  these  orders  to  be  illegal.  They  knew  it  at  Wash- 
ington, and  they  made  heroic  efforts  to  coerce  Congress  into  ratify- 
ing them,  but  Congress  never  did.  We  have  tried  to  force  a  test  of 
the  legality  of  these  orders  through  the  courts,  but  it  cannot  be  done 
except  by  criminal  procedure.  I  don't  know  the  exact  number,  but 
there  are  probably  more  than  a  hundred  men,  perfectly  good  men, 
under  indictment  at  this  moment  for  trying  to  buy  coal  land  in 
Alaska — exactly  as  I  should  have  done  if  the  officials  of  the  land 
office  would  have  taken  my  application.  You  see  the  Government, 
acting  by  virtue  of  these  illegal  orders,  not  only  stopped  any  further 
applications  from  being  filed,  but  would  not  permit  any  that  had 
already  been  filed  to  complete  their  purchases.  But  they  took 
their  money  and  gave  them  receipts  for  it  and  then  indicted  most 
of  them.  I  never  clearly  understood  why  they  did  not  indict  everv 


THE   ALASKAN    COAL    SITUATION  357 

man  who  tried  to  buy  a  coal  claim.  Why,  if  I  had  got  my  applica- 
tion to  purchase  some  of  that  coal  land  filed,  I  would  no  doubt  be 
under  indictment  at  this  very  moment.  Because  you  see  we  would 
certainly  have  got  a  number  to  join  us  in  the  applications  in  order 
to  get  a  tract  large  enough.  And  that  they  call  a  conspiracy  to 
defraud  the  Government. 

Some  of  these  criminal  cases  have,  after  some  tedious  years,  at 
last  got  to  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States.  They  were 
argued  only  a  few  days  ago  and  it  is  possible  we  shall  shortly  know 
whether  it  is  a  criminal  conspiracy  for  ten  men  to  each  apply  to  buy 
a  coal  claim  if  they  had  any  mental  idea  among  themselves  that 
they  would  work  their  claims  in  one  body  after  they  got  their  pat- 
ents. It  would  be  the  only  way  they  could  work  them  and  it  re- 
mains to  be  seen  whether  that  way  was  a  crime. 

That  coal  land  law. of  Alaska  was  declared  by  Congress  to  be 
for  the  purpose  of  aiding  the  development  of  coal  mines.  As  con- 
strued by  the  executive  department,  it  is  a  law  to  trap  citizens  into 
criminal  conspiracies  and  get  their  money.  We.  sliall  shortly  learn 
how  the  judicial  department  construes  it. 

The  administration  of  the  coal  law  since  1906  shows  a  plain 
intention  on  the  part  of  the  Government  NOT  to  carry  out  and  ad- 
minister the  law  according  to  its  spirit  and  intent,  but  to  defeat  the 
law  and  nullify  it  according  to  some  different  spirit  and  intent. 

Except  in  criminal  proceedings,  we  cannot  test  the  legality  of 
the  action  of  the  department. 

Sixteen  Applications  Pend  in  Fairbanks. 

There  are  sixteen  applications  now  pending  in  the  land  office 
at  Fairbanks.  They  applied  to  purchase  each  160  acres  of  coal 
land,  as  the  law  provides.  The  agent  at  the  land  office  refused  to 
accept  the  applications  because  the  Roosevelt  order  of  1906  had 
"withdrawn"  the  land  from  the  operation  offc  the  law.  They  ap- 
pealed to  the  commissioner  of  the  land  office  at  Washington, 
claiming  that  the  order  was  illegal  and  that  they  were  entitled  to 
buy  the  land  as  the  law  provided,  but  the  commissioner  sustained 
the  orders  instead  of  the  law.  Then  they  appealed  to  the  Secretary 
of  the  Interior.  Now  it  is  the  rule  in  reference  to  land  laws  that 
you  cannot  appeal  to  the  courts  until  all  remedies  fail  in  the  interior 
department.  The  Secretary  of  the  Interior  is  the  final  authority  in 
the  land  department.  When  he  has  finally  passed  on  a  question,  you 
can  then  for  the  first  time  appeal  to  the  court.  The  court  you  can 
appeal  to,  however,  is  not  a  court  where  the  land  is  situated,  but 


358         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

your  appeal  is  to  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  District  of  Columbia 
which  sits  at  Washington,  five  thousand  miles  away. 

Now,  when  these  sixteen  applicants  at  Fairbanks  offered  their 
applications  they  knew  they  would  be  rejected,  but  they  planned  to 
appeal  to  the  commissioner  of  the  land  office  and  then  to  the 
Secretary  of  the  Interior  and  get  their  decisions  as  soon  as  possible. 
When  the  Secretary's  decision  was  rendered,  they  proposed  to  ap- 
peal at  once  to  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  District  of  Columbia  and 
there  get  a  judicial,  not  an  executive  consideration  of  those  presi- 
dential orders.  But  though  their  appeal  to  the  Secretary  was  filed 
more  than  a  year  ago,  no  decision  has  been  rendered  upon  it,  and 
therefore  they  cannot  appeal  to  the  court.  They  can  neither  get  a 
decision  one  way  or  the  other,  and  are  thereby  denied  access  to  the 
courts. 

We  held  a  conference  at  Fairbanks  this  summer  to  see  if  some 
way  could  not  be  found  to  bring  the  cases  into  the  courts  in  Alaska 
in  order  that  we  may  have  the  orders  of  the  President  setting  aside 
the  coal  law  tested,  but  no  way  could  be  found.  We  discussed  the 
plan  of  having  one  man  claim  the  land  for  a  gold  mine  and  another 
for  a  coal  mine,  for  there  is  both  gold  and  coal  in  the  same  land,  and 
then  begin  suit  between  them  in  the  Alaska  courts,  but  this  it  was 
decided  would  not  test  the  orders,  but  only  test  whether  the  land  was 
more  valuable  for  gold  than  coal.  We  discussed  the  plan  of  going 
onto  the  land  and  beginning  to  mine  coal,  let  ourselves  be  arrested 
for  trespassing  on  Government  land,  but  this  also  was  given  up 
because  we  could  not  induce  the  officers  to  arrest  us. 

So  we  are  helpless  until  the  appeals  in  the  interior  department 
are  taken  out  of  the  pigeon  hole  and  decided,  if  they  ever  are.  No 
matter  how  unlawful  the  presidential  orders  may  be,  we  have  no 
way  to  test  them  when  the  executive  department  will  only  hold  up 
the  applications  and  not  finally  decide  them. 

Now  the  executive  department  that  has  abrogated  the  existing 
law  proposes  to  coerce  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  to  pass 
a  new  law.    They  evidently  assume  that  the  existing  law  is  wiped 
out  by  these  presidential  orders.    And  indeed  it  is  in  effect. 
Complete  Change  Proposed. 

They  propose  to  make  a  complete  change  in  our  system  of 
land  titles.  They  would  change  from  the  freehold  to  the  lease- 
hold system.  They  want  to  retain  more  power  over  the  people, 
in  the  bureaus  at  Washington.  A  thousand  years  and  more  ago, 
all  the  lands  in  England  and  France  and  most  of  Europe  was  held 
under  leasehold.  They  called  it  the  feudal  system,  and  the  people 


THE   ALASKAN    COAL    SITUATION  359 

who  occupied  the  land  as  tenants  were  called  vassals  and  were 
obliged  to  do  humble  service  of  allegiance  in  one  form  or  another 
in  order  to  hold  the  land.  Gradually  there  came  to  be  some  who 
held  their  land  free — free  from  any  rent  service,  or  military  service 
or  any  other  form  of  submission  and  allegiance,  as  a  condition  of 
the  title:  These  were  freeholders,  free  men.  When  the  American 
colonies  established  their  independence,  the  last  vestige  of  feudal 
tenures  was  abolished  and  all  the  lands  in  the  nation  were  held  as 
freeholds  and  this  country  became  a  free  country,  not  a  country 
of  vassals  and  tenants,  but  a  land  of  freeholders  and  free  men. 

Now  they  propose  to  return  to  that  old  feudal  system  and  make 
the  people  of  Alaska  tenants  and  tribute  payers — to  make  them  come 
as  suppliants  and  vassals  to  Washington  for  leave  and  direction  how 
to  work  the  lands  and  permission,  when  they  desire  to  transfer  them. 

Does  the  Government  need  revenues  so  much  that  it  will  put  a 
royalty  of  ten  cents  a  ton  on  coal  that  people  may  mine  in  Alaska? 
If  the  Government  needs  revenue  let  them  impose  a  tax  of  ten  cents 
a  ton  on  all  the  coal  used  in  the  United  States  and  Alaska  will  bear 
her  part  equally  with  the  rest,  but  if  you  impose  a  royalty  tax  on 
coal  produced  in  Alaska  and  not  on  coal  produced  elsewhere,  we 
become  merely  tribute  payers  to  the  treasury.  It  is  unequal  and 
unjust. 

I  am  not  certain  that  a  leasing  bill  may  not  be  drawn  that 
would  be  a  workable  and  just  law,  but  the  Robinson  Bill,  now  pend- 
ing before  Congress  and  advocated  by  Mr.  Pinchot,  is  certainly  not 
such  a  bill.  Why,  that  bill  in  effect  proposes  to  repeal  the  great 
law  of  supply  and  demand  and  have  the  price  of  coal  mined  in 
Alaska  fixed  by  a  bureau  or  commission  at  Washington.  If  the 
law  of  supply  and  demand  could  be  ignored  and  the  prices  of  com- 
modities fixed  by  law,  why,  all  this  complaint  about  the  high  cost 
of  living  should  be  settled  at  once.  Simply  establish  a  lovely  new 
bureau  at  Washington  and  let  them  fix  the  prices  of  everything  and 
be  done  with  it. 

This  Robinson  Bill  goes  even  further  in  interference  with  nat- 
ural laws.  It  provides  that  no  railroad  shall  own  any  coal  mine  or 
have  any  interest  in  any  or  any  shareholder  have  any  interest  in 
coal.  Now  the  coal  cannot  be  mined  or  hauled  without  railroads  and 
the  only  inference  that  can  be  drawn  is  that  the  law  of  gravitation 
was  also  to  be  suspended  or  repealed  in  relation  to  Alaska  coal  so 
that  it  would  be  transported  in  great  quantities  and  to  great  dis- 
tances without  any  railroads. 


360         PROCEEDINGS   AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

The  stoppage  of  coal  mining  in  Alaska  has  strangled  the  growth 
of  the  territory.  The  territory  gained  less  than  two  per  cent  in  the 
last  ten  years,  while  it  gained  nearly  a  hundred  per  cent  in  the  pre- 
ceding ten  years.  This  hurts  every  individual  in  Alaska,  either 
directly  or  indirectly. 

To  Mr.  Pinchot  and  men  like  him,  the  Alaska  coal  question  is 
one  of  only  academic  interest,  but  we  in  Alaska  are  intimately  af- 
fected in  our  living,  our  prosperity,  and  in  our  hopes  of  comfort. 

He  and  others  go  to  Alaska,  spend  a  few  days  or  weeks  of  a 
summer's  vacation  and  come  back  as  a  philanthropist  and  propose 
new  ways  to  govern  our  affairs.  Gentlemen,  I  want  to  say  this,  I 
believe  no  man  is  qualified  to  legislate  upon  a  subject  in  relation  to 
the  welfare  of  a  people  except  he  is  one  of  the  people.  (Applause.) 
If  Mr.  Pinchot  lived  in  Alaska,  or  hunted  for  his  living  there,  as 
the  rest  of  us  do ;  if  he  tried  to  carry  on  an  enterprise  there,  or  de- 
velop and  establish  a  business  in  that  territory,  then  his  judgment 
would  be  valuable,  his  opinions  could  be  weighed  by  others  in  a 
similar  position  and  by  argument,  the  accuracy  and  truth  of  his 
ideas  ascertained. 

But  when  he  attempts  to  regulate  our  affairs  as  an  academic 
matter,  to  strengthen  his  power  over  us  for  his  own  glory  and  sat- 
isfaction, it  is  inverting  the  true  principles  of  government  and  we 
become  a  governed  and  subject  people  instead  of  a  free  and  self- 
governing  people. 

British  Columbia  Law  Admirable. 

They  talk  of  adopting  the  New  Zealand  coal  land  law  for 
Alaska,  or  the  British  Columbia* law.  Gentlemen,  they  forget  the 
main  principles  of  these  laws:  That  is  the  New  Zealand  coal  land 
laws  were  made  in  New  Zealand  and  made  by  the  people  affected. 
So  were  the  British  Columbia  laws.  They  were  not  made  in  Lon- 
don, not  even  in  Ottawa,  but  by  the  people  of  British  Columbia 
themselves.  And  I  want  to  say  this :  The  British  Columbia  coal 
land  law  is  an  admirable  law  and  if  we  had  a  similar  law  in  Alaska 
we  should  now  be  selling  coal  to  British  Columbia  instead  of  buying 
from  them. 

We  can  never  have  satisfactory  laws  in  Alaska  until  they  can 
be  made  by  those  who  are  directly  affected  by  them.  (Applause.) 

If  we  must  have  a  leasing  law  in  Alaska,  and  I  am  prepared  to 
agree  to  a  leasing  law  or  any  other  law  that  will  open  up  the 
country,  then  the  law  should  contain  a  provision  that  it  should  not 
be  suspended  or  nullified  by  the  President.  It  should  further  pro- 
vide that  if  the  agents  in  the  land  office  refuse  to  accept  applications 


THE    ALASKAN    COAL    SITUATION  361 

and  the  officers  of  the  interior  department  neglect  or  refuse  to 
administer  the  law,  the  citizen  aggrieved  may  apply  to  the  Courts  in 
Alaska,  not  in  Washington,  to  compel  the  land  office  to  administer 
and  carry  out  the  law. 

Why,  this  Pinchot  and  his  propaganda  have  made  the  people 
of  the  United  States  think  that  the  people  of  Alaska  are  all  thieves 
and  engaged  in  trying  to  steal  the  vast  public  lands  there.  A  man 
on  the  train  the  other  day  on  hearing  I  was  from  Alaska,  said  to 
me  in  great  sincerity,  "The  Cunninghams  and  the  Guggenheims 
have  stolen  about  all  there  is  in  Alaska,  haven't  they?" 

The  Cunningham  Case. 

The  Government  has  fifty  odd  thousand  dollars  of  Cunning- 
ham's and  his  friends'  money  safely  in  the  treasury  at  Washing- 
ton now,  and  has  given  them  no  land  at  all  for  it.  Cunningham 
and  his  friends  have  spent  at  least  fifty  thousand  dollars  more  in 
developing,  surveying  and  improving  the  lands  they  applied  to 
purchase  and  the  Government,  according  to  the  decision  of  the 
commissioner  of  the  land  office,  keeps  not  only  their  money  and 
the  land,  but  their  improvements  as  well.  Fortunately  for  Cun- 
ningham and  his  friends,  however,  they  have  not  been  indicted. 
That  is  the  result  of  their  efforts  to  buy  coal  land  from  the  Govern- 
ment. For  injustice  carried  to  the  extent  of  cruelty,  I  know  of 
no  case  in  the  history  of  the  country  to  match  the  action  of  the 
Government  in  the  Cunningham  cases. 

The  Guggenheims  with  the  Morgan  house  have  built  200  miles 
of  railroad  from  the  coast  up  into  the  mountains  of  Alaska — one 
of  the  most  difficult  and  expensive  bits  of  railroad  ever  undertaken 
anywhere  in  the  world.  They  got  no  subsidy  and  no  aid,  but  the 
Government  compels  them  to  pay  a  license  of  $20,000  per  year  for 
the  privilege  of  operating  the  road.  This  is  the  equivalent  of  5% 
on  $400,000,  and  is  exactly  the  same  in  effect  as  if  they  had  been 
compelled  to  pay  that  huge  sum  into  the  Treasury  of  the  United 
States  as  a  penalty  for  trying  to  develop  the  country  with  a  rail- 
road. And  we  need  railroads  in  Alaska  more  than  anything  else. 
We  need  five  thousand  miles  of  railroad  in  Alaska  to  properly  de- 
velop it,  and  then  we  would  not  have  enough.  We  have  actually 
less  than  five  hundred  miles  and  those  burdened  with  a  tax  which 
is  taken  back  to  the  treasury  at  Washington  equal  to  the  interest 
on  $2,000  per  mile,  and  on  top  of  it  all  they  are  charged  with  try- 
ing to  gobble  and  steal  the  whole  of  Alaska. 

How  can  the  country  develop  against  these  conditions? 


362         PROCEEDINGS   AMERICAN    MINING   CONGRESS 

The  land  laws  of  British  Columbia  and  of  Canada  have  been 
referred  to  as  an  example  to  be  followed  in  Alaska.  It  may  be 
worth  while  to  'point  out  the  fact  that  Canada  spends  a  million 
dollars  a  year  to  advertise  and  encourage  immigrants  to  settle  and 
develop  her  vacant  lands.  The  United  States  spends  not  a  cent 
for  Alaska. 

The  Canadian  Government  has  now  under  construction  a  great 
trans-continental  railroad  more  than  3,600  miles  in  length  and 
costing  over  two  hundred  and  fifty  million  dollars.  In  addition  to 
this  great  trans-continental  line,  many  other  branch  lines  are  sub- 
sidized and  aided  in  various  ways  and  the  result  is  that  not  less 
than  250,000  settlers  per  year  are  being  attracted  to  the  Canadian 
provinces. 

The  United  States  Government  spends  not  a  cent  to  aid  or 
encourage  railroads  in  Alaska,  but  burdens  them  with  $2,000  a 
mile  as  a  penalty.  Though  our  lands  will  produce  all  that  the 
Canadian  lands  produce  and  in  addition  contain  incalculable  stores 
of  precious  metals,  we  have  made  practically  no  gains  in  popula- 
tion in  ten  years. 


Alaskan  Problems. 

BY   HON.    WALTER   L.    FISHER, 
SECRETARY    OF    THE    INTERIOR. 


The  public  interest  in  the  Alaskan  situation  is  such  that,  with 
the  consent  of  the  President,  I  have  concluded  at  your  request  to 
make  at  this  time  a  candid,  if  somewhat  informal,  expression  of  the 
views  I  have  formed  as  Secretary  of  the  Interior,  under  whose 
official  supervision  much  of  the  administration  of  the  territory  is 
now  placed.  Pressure  of  other  matters  imperatively  requiring  at- 
tention has  prevented  their  presentation  in  as  precise  and  compre- 
hensive a  form  as  I  had  hoped.  This  and  the  absence  of  the  Presi- 
dent from  Washington  has  also  prevented  the  submission  to  him  of 
what  I  have  prepared.  I  wish  to  say,  however,  that  no  one  is  more 
earnest  than  he  in  the  desire  to  see  a  policy  of  prompt  and  wise 
development  inaugurated  in  Alaska  and  that  the  general  policy 
contained  in  this  address  has  been  discussed  with  him,  meets  his 
approval,  and  will  have  his  support. 

I  have  but  recently  returned  from  an  altogether  too  brief  but 
nevertheless  a  most  interesting  and  profitable  visit  to  those  portions 
of  Alaska  which  are  more  immediately  involved  in  the  questions 
now  under  public  consideration.  Favored  by  extraordinary  weather 
and  the  co-operation  of  steamship  and  railroad  lines  and  the  assist- 
ance of  all  of  the  governmental  agencies,  including  the  revenue 
cutter  service,  I  visited  every  port  in  Alaska  which  seems  likely  in 
the  near  future  to  become  an  important  entrance  to  the  country.  I 
examined  all  of  the  harbor  and  town  sites  which  for  this  purpose 
have  attracted  any  considerable  public  attention.  I  traversed  the 
entire  length  of  each  of  the  three  railroads  which  have  been  con- 
structed in  the  territory  and  made  a  short  trip  from  White  Horse 
down  the  upper  Yukon.  Both  before  and  during  the  journey  I  ex- 
amined a  mass  of  books,  records,  and  papers  relating  to  the  country 
and  its  resources.  I  had  conferences  with  official  committees  rep- 
resenting the  principal  communities  I  visited  and  with  numerous  in- 
dividuals, residents  both  of  the  coast  and  of  the  interior,  and  con- 
ferred with  engineers,  miners,  prospectors,  railroad  officials,  busi- 
ness and  professional  men. 

I  had  the  good  fortune  to  have  with  me  throughout  the  entire 
Alaska  trip  Alfred  H.  Brooks,  geologist  in  charge  of  the  Alaskan 


364         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

division  of  the  United  States  Geological  Survey.  For  fourteen 
years  Mr.  Brooks  has  been  studying  Alaskan  conditions  on  the 
ground;  for  nine  years  he  has  been  in  charge  of  the  mineral 
division  of  the  geological  survey  work  there.  I  had  arranged  for 
Dr.  J.  A.  Holmes,  Director  of  the  Bureau  of  Mines,  to  precede  me 
to  the  Bering  river  coal  field,  which  he  examined  thoroughly  before 
joining  me  at  Cordova.  In  the  examination  of  the  Bering  River 
field  Dr.  Holmes  was  accompanied  by  L.  T.  Wolle,  of  Ohio,  an  engi- 
neer of  large  experience  both  in  coal  mining  and  railway  construc- 
tion; F.  W.  C.  Whyte,  of  Montana,  whose  coal  mining  and  rail- 
way experience  has  been  extensive  in  the  management  for  years  of 
the  coal  developments  and  operations  of  the  Anaconda  Copper  Co. ; 
T.  H.  O'Brien,  who  for  a  number  of  years  has  been  organizing  and 
managing  the  coal  operations  of  the  Copper  Queen,  Stag  Canon, 
and  other  companies  in  the  Southwest ;  and  George  Watkins  Evans, 
a  coal-mining  engineer  of  experience  in  the  Northwest  states,  who 
had  already  made  several  professional  examinations  of  the  Bering 
River  coal  field.  To  these  gentlemen,  one  and  all,  I  am  greatly 
indebted  for  the  valuable  service  they  have  rendered  in  this  con- 
nection: In  his  subsequent  examination  of  the  Matanuska  coal 
field  Dr.  Holmes  was  accompanied  by  Mr.  Whyte  and  Sumner  S. 
Smith,  who  is  a  mining  engineer  and  the  inspector  of  mines  for 
Alaska. 

Alaskans  Broad  Minded. 

At  the  very  outset  I  wish  to  express  the  high  opinion  I  formed 
of  the  remarkably  large  and  fine  body  of  people  who  have  be- 
come permanent  residents  of  Alaska.  While  there  is  unquestion- 
ably a  considerable  floating  population  of  a  character  which  does 
not  add  to  the  real  strength  or  stability  of  the  territory,  there  is  a 
substantial  percentage  of  vigorous,  law-abiding,  law-respecting 
men  and  women  of  the  highest  type  of  American  citizenship,  and  I 
found  that  they  possessed  what  is  perhaps  the  highest  form  of  moral 
courage — the  ability  and  the  willingness  to  look  at  both  sides  of  the 
questions  which  affect  their  interests  and  to  admit  that  they  are 
wrong  when  once  convinced  that  they  have  been  led  into  a  mistake 
of  fact  or  of  opinion.  The  total  population  is  about  65,000,  of 
which  a  little  less  than  half  are  whites. 

They  are  entitled  to  a  territorial  government  better  adapted  to 
their  peculiar  local  conditions  and  needs.  The  existing  coal-land 
laws  applicable  to  Alaska  neither  promote  development  nor  protect 
the  public,  and  all  its  coal  fields  are  withdrawn  from  entry.  Nu- 
merous claims  under  entries  made  or  attempted  to  be  made  prior  to 


ALASKAN    PROBLEMS  365 

the  withdrawal  are  pending  in  he  department  of  the  interior. 
Their  investigation  is  now  being  pushed  as  rapidly  as  possible,  and 
wherever  indictments  are  not  pending  they  will  be  decided  as 
promptly  as  this  can  be  done  properly. 

I  found  Alaska  a  country  of  wonderful  scenic  beauty,  which 
in  itself  will  in  future  years  be  one  of  its  greatest  financial  assets. 
From  all  the  information  I  could  gather,  I  believe  it  to  be  a  country 
of  great  mineral  and  agricultural  possibilities ;  indeed,  I  should  go 
further  and  say  a  country  of  great  mineral  and  agricultural  proba- 
bilities, needing  development,  ready  for  development,  and  inviting 
development,  but  held  back  chiefly  by  inadequate  transportation 
facilities  and  inadequate  laws. 

Its  present  steamship  lines  are  probably  as  good  as  could  be 
expected,  in  view  of  the  restricted  commerce  and  the  inadequate 
manner  in  which  its  coasts  are  marked  and  lighted.  Its  present 
roads  are  almost  entirely  those  which  have  been  built  out  of  the 
meager  appropriations  made  by  Congress  for  this  purpose.  Travel 
by  road  or  trail  in  Alaska  is  still  generally  of  the  roughest  pioneer 
description.  Its  present  railroads  are  incidents  to  the  exploitation 
of  its  mineral  resources. 

One  Real  Railroad. 

Aside  from  the  White  Pass  &  Yukon  road  there  is  only  one  real 
railroad  in  Alaska,  and  that  is  the  Copper  River  &  Northwestern 
Railroad,  which  leads  from  Cordova,  on  Prince  William  Sound,  200 
miles  up  he  Copper  river,  and  its  eastern  tributary,  the  Chitina,  to 
the  Bonanza  copper  field,  and  is  reported  to  have  cost  approxi- 
mately $20,000,000.  The  White  Pass  &  Yukon  Railroad  is  an  ex- 
cellent narrow-gauge  road  along  the  line  of  the  historic  trail  which 
leads  over  the  mountains  and  down  the  Yukon  to  the  gold  fields  ot 
the  Klondike,  but  only  a  small  part  of  this  railroad  is  in  the  terri- 
tory of  the  United  States.  The  Alaska  Central  Railroad  starts  from 
Seward  for -the  Matanuska  coal  fields  and  the  Yukon,  but  stops,  dis- 
couraged, 70  miles  north  of  Seward.  The  present  cry  in  Alaska 
and  among  those  who  are  financially  interested  in  Alaska  is  that 
development  has  been  stopped  by  the  withdrawal  of  the  coal  fields 
from  entry.  I  am  convinced  that  the  coal  withdrawals  have  exerted 
only  an  incidental  influence  upon  the  development  of  railroads  in 
Alaska.  If  the  coal  fields  had  remained  open  to  unrestricted  private 
exploitation,  railroad  development  might  have  been  stimulated,  but 
in  that  event  the  profits  of  the  coal  and  not  of  the  railroads  would 
have  been  the  incentive  to  construction. 


366         PROCEEDINGS   AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

We  have  already  seen  in  this  country  the  injurious  effects  of  the 
joint  or  common  ownership  of  coal  fields  and  railroads,  and  we  are 
now  engaged  in  the  attempt  by  drastic  legislation  to  remedy  the  evils 
which  the  withdrawal  of  the  coal  fields  of  Alaska  should  prevent 
from  recurring  there.  We  should  not  repeat  in  Alaska  or  elsewhere 
the  mistakes  which  have  been  made  in  the  older  portions  of  the 
United  States.  This  does  not  mean  that  Alaskan  coal  should  not 
be  developed  and  developed  at  once.  It  means  merely  that  it  should 
be  developed  properly  as  well  as  promptly. 

Alaskan  coal  is  of  great  value,  but  its  extent  and  character  have 
been  much  exaggerated.  There  are  great  quantities  of  lignite  and 
low-grade  bituminous  coal  in  several  parts  of  the  territory,  but 
there  are  only  two  known  fields  of  high-grade  coal  in  Alaska.  The 
better  known  of  these  two  fields  is  the  Bering  river  field,  which 
is  near  Controller  bay,  and  in  which  the  Cunningham  claims  were 
located.  It  is  the  field  about  which  the  Alaskan  controversy  has 
been  fiercest  and  most  bitter.  The  Matanuska  field  is  larger  and 
may  prove  to  be  the  more  important.  Both  of  these  fields  contain 
anthracite  and  high-grade  bituminous  coals.  The  question  is  how 
they  shall  be  opened  so  as  to  promote  development  and  protect  the 
public  interests.  Before  answering  that  question  it  is  necessary 
to  consider  the  general  conditions  which  now  exist  and  the  real  end 
which  we  wish  to  attain.  Alaskan  coal  can  be  .opened  so  as  to 
enable  a  larger,  or  smaller  number  of  individuals  or  groups  of  in- 
dividuals to  make  money  out  of  their  development,  bringing  with 
this  development  considerable  incidental  benefit  tt*  the  community 
as  a  whole  through  the  expenditure  of  money  and  the  employment 
of  men,  or  it  can  be  opened  on  terms  which  will  offer  to  the 
operator  a  sufficient  profit  to  furnish  an  adequate  incentive  for  his 
investment  and  his  efforts,  but  which  will  result  in  placing  the  coal 
upon  the  market  at  the  cheapest  price  consistent  with  this  in- 
centive, conferring  upon  the  community  the  manifold  advantages  of 
cheap  fuel  and  of  the  deevlopment  of  the  many  forms  of  industrial 
enterprise  which  cheap  fuel  renders  possible. 

I  think  there  can  be  no  room  for  doubt  that  the  second  of  these 
objects  is  the  one  to  be  attained.  If.  however,  Alaskan  coal  is  to 
be  mined  and  sold  under  any  plan,  it  is  important  to  know  what  is 
likely  to  be  the  present  and  future  market.  There  is  at  present  on 
the  Pacific  coast  no  available  anthracite  except  that  in  Alaska.  It 
would  be  natural,  therefore,  to  expect  an  immediate  demand  for 
this  particular  kind  of  coal.  There  is  little  high-grade  bituminous 
coal  on  either  the  eastern  or  western  border  of  the  Pacific,  and 


ALASKAN    PROBLEMS  367 

it  would  be  natural  to  expect  a  considerable  demand  for  coal  of  this 
character.  There  is  little,  if  any,  high-grade  coking  coal  on  the 
Pacific  unless  in  Alaska,  and  there  is  an  immediate  demand  for  -a 
certain  amount  of  coking  coal  for  smelting  copper  and  other  ores. 
There  is,  of  course,  a  certain  present  limited  demand  in  Alaska  for 
coal  for  steaming  purposes.  The  amount  used  for  all  purposes 
during  the  last  fiscal  year  was  116,000  tons.  Except  for  coking  use, 
it  is  clear,  however,  that  Alaska  coal  must  now  contend  with  serious 
competition.  There  are  considerable  quantities  of  lignite  and  low- 
grade  bituminous  coal  throughout  the  lower  Pacific  northwest  and 
in  British  Columbia.  Much  of  the  .bituminous  coals  are  of  fair 
quality.  When  freight  and  handling  charges  are  taken  into  con- 
sideration it  is  clear  that  for  steaming  purposes  the  coal  of  British 
Columbia  and  of  the  northwestern  states  will  hold  everything  but 
the  Alaskan  market  itself  against  competition  from  any  of  the 
Alaskan  coals  except  that  of  the  very  highest  grade,  and  coal  of  this 
quality  can  expect  to  win  only  where  special  considerations  control. 
Oil  Supplanting  Coal. 

For  ordinary  heating  and  steaming  purposes  it  is  always  pos- 
sible for  low-grade  coal  at  lower  prices  to  control  the  market.  But 
for  these  purposes  the  most  serious  competitor  of  Alaska  coal  is 
California  oil,' which  is  already  supplanting  coal  in  many  fields  and 
possesses  advantages  in  economy  and  convenience  of  handling.  The 
most  reliable  estimate  as  to  the  life  of  the  California  oil  fields  of 
which  I  have  any  knowledge  is  that  they  will  be  an  active  com- 
petitor for  the  entire  heat-producing  market  for  the  next  50  years. 
Oil  has  already  supplanted  coal  on  many  of  the  western  railroads, 
and  is  now  being  installed  in  the  railroads  and  steamships  of  Alaska 
and  the  Pacific  coast.  Whether  it  will  be  possible  for  Alaska  coal 
to  compete  with  it,  once  the  necessary  changes  in  the  boiler  equip- 
ment have  been  made,  is  exceedingly  -doubtful.  Oil,  however,  is  a 
less  dangerous  competitor  in  smelting  and  in  making  steel.  It  is 
not  now  used  for  either  of  these  purposes,  except  experimentally. 

Vast  deposits  of  copper  are  already  known  to  exist  in  Alaska, 
and  smelters  will  undoubtedly  be  established  in  that  country  as 
well  as  farther  south  upon  the  Pacific  coast.  Some  iron  exists  in 
the  Pacific  states,  and  there  are  numerous  indications  of  its  pres- 
ence in  Alaska,  although  commercial  development  there  is  as  yet 
practically  negligible.  My  own  judgment  is  that  the  present  mar- 
ket for  Alaskan  coal  is  limited  and  uncertain,  but  that  the  demand 
will  rapidly  increase  as  the  country  is  developed.  There  are  now 
the  local  needs  of  a  comparatively  small  population  and  compara- 


368         PROCEEDINGS   AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

lively  few  industrial  enterprises.  There  is  also  some  demand  for 
high-grade  coal  on  the  lower  Pacific  coast  which  Alaska  alone 
can  furnish  and  supply. 

If  mines  are  opened  there  should  be,  and  in  my  opinion  there 
will  be,  immediately  established  on  Prince  William  Sound  one  or 
more  smelters  capable  of  smelting  the  copper  ores  which  are  now 
being  mined  and  of  taking  care  of  the  development  of  this  ore 
which  seems  sure  to  come  in  the  early  future.  There  will  be  at  some 
time  a  demand  for  coke  for  making  steel;  and  if  adequate  trans- 
portation facilities  are  furnished  so  as  to  permit  of  the  development 
of  the  iron  and  other  minerals  which  probably  exist  in  the  country 
there  will  be  an  increasing  demand  for  coke  for  these  and  for  the 
ores  of  the  lower  Pacific.  After  all,  however,  important  as  these 
needs  and  opportunities  are,  it  seems  reasonably  clear  that  Alaskan 
coal  will  not  dominate  the  coal  market  of  the  Pacific  coast  as  it 
was  confidently  thought  it  would  when  the  fields  were  first  discov- 
ered. That  this  is  true  will  be  apparent  upon  a  further  considera- 
tion of  the  physical  condition  of  the  coal  fields  and  of  the  coal  itself. 
I  personally  visited  the  Bering  field  and  examined  some  of  its  coal 
veins  and  coal  mines.  It  is  located  along  the  foot  of  the  Chugach 
mountains,  in  the  region  a  little  south  of  Prince  William  Sound 
and  some  1,200  miles  from  Seattle.  The  fields  cover  an  area  of 
50  square  miles  or  32,000  acres,  lying  approximately  25  miles  from 
the  coast  at  Controller  bay  with  an  immense  glacier,  known  as  the 
Bering  glacier,  on  the  east  from  which  the  Bering  River  runs  and 
empties  into  Controller  bay.  This  field  was  discovered  in  1896  and 
practically  all  of  it  appears  to  have  been  covered  by  claims  entered 
under  the  law  of  1904.  The  country  is  exceedingly  rough  and 
broken  and  the  rocks  are  faulted  and  folded  to  an  extraordinary 
degree. 

Difficult  to  Determine  Condition  of  Coal  Beds. 
In  addition  to  the  titantic  upheavals  which  must  have  oc- 
curred at  this  point,  the  stratification  has  slid  or  moved  within  itself 
in  such  a  way  as  to  crush  the  large  portion  of  the  coal  beds  in 
this  field,  leaving  what  otherwise  would  have  been  the  highest  grade 
of  bituminous  coal  so  that  much  of  it  cannot  be  mined  as  lump  coal, 
but  only  in  a  finely  crushed  condition.  There  is,  however,  some 
coal  in  the  field  which  doubtless  can  be  mined  as  lump,  but  how 
much  there  is  of  this  coal  remains  a  question  of  considerable  doubt. 
This  doubt  is  further  intensified  by  the  fact  that 'in  the  crushing 
process  the  coal  beds  have  become  pinched  so  that  beds  of  consid- 
erable thickness  at  one  point  become  thin  or  even  pinched  out 


ALASKAN    PROBLEMS  369 

within  a  short  distance,  making  it  difficult  to  determine  what  will 
be  the  condition  of  the  beds  at  any  given  point  beyond  the  ex- 
plored area.  All  of  these  conditions  will  add  materially  to  the 
cost  of  mining,  which  will  be  further  increased  by  the  fact  that 
the  coal  itself  can  not  be  relied  upon  to  support  the  roof  of  the 
mine  and  that  timbering  will  have  to  be  resorted  to  to  an  unusual 
extent.  Although  the  local  timber  is  of  poor  quality,  it  will  prob- 
ably answer  for  ordinary  mining  purposes,  but  the  cost  of  labor 
will  be  high.  Aside  from  its  crushed  condition,  much  of  the  coal 
itself  is  of  excellent  quality,  possessing  high  thermal  value.  The 
crushed  condition  does  not  interfere  with  its  coking  quality  if 
otherwise  good.  Although  it  can  be  briquetted,  or  with  the  use  of 
specially  constructed  furnaces  it  can  be  burned  successfully  in  its 
present  form,  its  physical  condition  will  undoubtedly  interfere  with 
its  immediate  commercial  value.  The  erection  of  smelters  on  Prince 
William  Sound  will  cause  an  immediate  demand  for  this  coal,  as 
the  first  smelters  will  probably  be  erected  at  or  near  Cordova, 
which  is  the  tidewater  terminal  of  the  Copper  River  and  North- 
western Railroad,  which  now  taps  the  principal  copper  field  of  the 
territory. 

One  of  the  pressing  needs  of  the  territory  is  the  construction 
of  such  smelters  at  which  the  copper  ore  especially  can  be  smelted 
without  the  labor  and  expense  of  transporting  the  ore  the  enormous 
distance  now  necessary  for  this  purpose.  The  main  purpose  and 
practically  the  only  present  use  of  the  extensive  railroad  from 
Cordova  up  the  Copper  river  is  the  transportation  of  the  ore  from 
the  so-called  Bonanza  copper  field  in  which  the  Morgan-Guggen- 
heim syndicate,  which  owns  this  railroad,  already  has  extensive 
interests.  No  smelter,  however,  has  as  yet  been  constructed,  and 
none  would  be  profitable  until  the  coal  and  the  copper  can  be 
brought  together.  Once  the  Bering  coal  fields  are  open  the  trans- 
portation problem  becomes  in  this,  as  in  other  respects,  the  most 
important  problem  upon  the  solution  of  which  future  develop- 
ment will  depend.  The  enormous  expense  of  railroad  construc- 
tion through  the  mountainous  and  glacier-covered  territory  makes 
it  practically  certain  that  the  Copper  River  Railroad  will  remain 
the  natural  distributor  for  any  of  this  coal  for  which  there  may 
be  a  demand  in  the  interior  of  the  particular  district  in  which  it 
is  located.  I  think  it  may  be  assumed,  not  only  from  the  state- 
ments made  to  me  by  its  officials  but  also  from  the  very  nature 
of  the  case,  that  the  people  interested  in  this  road  will  construct 
smelting  works  at  Cordova  as  soon  as  Alaskan  coal  is  available 


370         PROCEEDINGS   AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

for  its  use.  Smelters  at  Cordova  would  be  able  to  take  care  of 
the  copper  ores,  of  which  there  are  many  indications  throughout 
the  entire  district  tributary  to  Prince  William  Sound. 

The  exploitation  and  commercial  development  of  these  ores 
would  promptly  follow  the  construction  and  operation  of  such  smelt- 
ers. Representatives  of  the  Copper  River  Railroad  state  that  they 
will  immediately  construct  a  branch  line  to  the  Bering  coal  fields  as 
soon  as  they  are  opened  to  development.  Under  these  circumstances 
it  is  natural  to  inquire  what,  if  any,  advantages  there  would  be  in 
the  construction  of  another  railroad  from  tidewater  to  these  fields. 
The  answer  to  the  question  depends  largely  upon  the  extent  to  which 
the  Government  will  be  able  to  regulate  the  service  and  the  rates 
of  the  Copper  river  road.  Such  regulation,  however,  should  be 
comparatively  simple  and  effective,  especially  if  we  insist  upon 
keeping  the  railroad  or  its  owners  from  acquiring  a  controlling 
interest  in  the  coal  fields.  That  this  can  be  done  by  a  proper  sys- 
tem of  leasehold  I  see  no  reason  to  doubt.  Representatives  of  the 
railroad  have  assured  me  that  its  owners  recognize  and  intend  to 
accept  in  good  faith,  so  far  as  the  coal  fields  are  concerned,  the 
principle  upon  which  public  opinion  and  the  law  now  insist  in  the 
States  and  will  undoubtedly  insist  in  Alaska — the  principle  that 
transportation  lines  should  not  be  interested,  directly  or  indirectly, 
in  the  commodities  which  they  transport.  Whatever  may  be  thought 
of  such  assurances,  the  law  itself  should  divorce  the  railroads  from 
the  coal  business,  so  that  all  the  lessees  of  coal  lands  may  receive 
impartial  service  from  the  roads  and  the  incentive  to  favoritism 
may  be  removed.  If  this  can  successfully  be  accomplished,  it  is 
apparent  that  a  competitive  railroad  will  simply  divide  the  profits 
of  transportation,  which  are  now  not  adequate  to  pay  the  cost  of 
operation,  and  whose  future  can  not  be  foretold  with  any  certainty 
because  of  the  doubts  as  to  the  future  market  for  the  coal  to  which 
reference  has  already  been  made. 

Controller  Bay  Poor  Harbor. 

There  is,  however,  abundant  opportunity  for  competitive  roads 
if  they  should  ever  become  desirable.  Not  only  is  there  room  at  or 
near  Cordova  for  competitive  terminals,  but  there  is  ample  frontage 
reserve  for  a  Government  railroad  if  one  should  ever  be  desired. 
The  harbor  at  Cordova  is  so  clearly  superior  in  all  respects  to  any 
other  harbor  available  for  the  Bering  coal  fields  that  the  slightly 
longer  transportation  necessary  by  this  route  appears  entirely  un- 
important, especially  as  the  grade  is  practically  a  water  grade  to  the 
coal  fields.  Nevertheless,  there  is  a  possible  harbor,  although  a 


ALASKAN    PROBLEMS  371 

poor  and  expensive  one,  available  at  Controller  bay.  This  much 
discussed  bay,  tempest  tossed  by  controversy  as  well  as  by  nature, 
is  inclosed  partly  by  rocky  remnants  of  the  hills  and  partly  by  low 
reefs  built  up  of  mud  brought  down  by  glacial  streams  and  raised 
above  the  water  surface  by  action  of  the  waves.  The  bay  itself  is 
gradually  being  silted  up  by  similar  material  from  the  same  exten- 
sive glaciers  which  border  the  coal  fields  on  the  north  and  east  and 
probably  cover  many  beds  of  coal.  These  long,  low  reefs  and  fiats, 
together  with  the  rocky  islands  of  Kayak  and  Wingham  on  the 
southwest,  protect  its  waters  from  the  open  sea.  The  area  from 
the  base  of  the  coal-bearing  mountains  on  the  north,  along  the 
east  side  of  Bering  river,  to  the  bay,  a  distance  of  15  to  20  miles, 
is  a  low-lying  plain  but  a  few  feet  above  water  level,  much  of  it 
flat  and  swampy,  built  up  of  glacial  debris. 

The  entire  bay  is  shallow  except  a  narrow,  irregular  channel 
from  a  few  hundred  yards  to  a  mile  in  width  and  a  few  fanthoms 
in  depth  leading  southward  and  westward  to  the  sea.  The  tidal 
currents  passing  into  and  out  of  this  bay  diminish  the  settling  of 
glacial  silt  in  this  channel,  but  these  do  not  appear  to  prevent  the 
silting  up  of  the  larger  part  of  the  bay  itself;  and  doubtless  the 
channel  is  slowly  but  continuously  becoming  smaller  and  more 
shallow.  This  channel  lies  from  2  to  3  miles  out  from  the  present 
shore,  with  these  shallow  mud  flats  intervening.  Of  course, 
whether  and  how  rapidly  the  large  quantities  of  silt  brought  down 
from  the  glaciers  will  continue  to  fill  up  the  waters  of  Controller 
Bay  can  only  be  determined  by  careful  and  protracted  observation, 
but  there  is  every  reason  for  believing  that  this  process  will  con- 
tinue in  the  future  as  it  has  done  in  the  past  unless  the  conditions 
are  improved  by  artificial  construction  and  dredging. 

I  should  add,  however,  that  some  persons  insist  that  the  future 
deposits  brought  down  by  the  Bering  river  will  in  no  appreciable 
way  affect  the  navigability  of  the  bay ;  and  that  the  conditions  can 
be  easily  improved  by  dredging.  As  the  Controller  bay  region  is 
only  20  to  30  miles  distant  from  the  coal  fields,  there  have  naturally 
been  numerous  investigations  to  determine  the  possibility  of  con- 
structing harbor  facilities  there.  I  am  tol-d  that  it  was  carefully 
investigated  on  behalf  of  the  Copper  River  Railroad  by  engineers 
of  high  standing  and  was  discarded  as  impracticable.  The  attempt, 
however,  was  made  under  the  advice  of  engineers  of  this  road  to 
construct  a  harbor  at  Katalla,  which  is  outside  of  the  range  of 
islands  to  the  westward  of  Controller  bay,  where  there  is  deep 
water  immediately  off  shore  and  where  a  pier  or  breakwater  was 


372         PROCEEDINGS   AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

constructed  at  considerable  expense  in  the  vain  attempt  to  protect 
shipping  from  the  force  of  the  winds  and  waves  of  an  open  road- 
stead. A  storm  promptly  demolished  these  works  and  led  to  the 
removal  of  the  railroad  to  Cordova.  Its  representatives  say  they 
would  not  now  construct  a  harbor  at  Controller  bay  even  if  they 
should  become  interested  in  a  railroad  to  the  coal  fields,  and  give 
as  an  added  reason  the  necessary  duplication  of  dock  facilities  which 
they  are  now  constructing  at  Cordova. 

Obviously,  if  modern  dockage  is  provided  at  Cordova  for  cop- 
per ore  and  other  heavy  freight,  it  can  be  made  to  provide  for  coal 
with  less  additional  expense  than  if  separate  facilities  should  be 
constructed  on  Controller  bay.  Nevertheless,  several  other  rail- 
road enterprises  have  been  projected  at  Controller  bay,  but  ap- 
parently all  have  become  inactive  except  that  in  which  R.  S. 
Ryan  and  his  associates  are  interested.  It  was  the  persistence  of 
Mr.  Ryan  which  led  to  the  elimination  of  the  shore  of  Controller 
bay  from  the  Chugach  National  Forest,  and  he  has  made  three 
scrip  entries  on  the  shore,  which  are  still  pending  before  the  de- 
partment of  the  interior.  Following  the  law,  these  entries  each 
have  a  frontage  of  160  rods,  leaving  Sorod  intervals  between  them, 
which  the  law  provides  shall  be  kept  free  from  entry.  On  one  of 
these  So-rod  strips  a  railroad  terminal  has  been  located,  but  this 
entry  appears  to  be  without  any  warrant  of  law  and  is  based 
wholly  upon  the  theory  that  a  railroad-terminal  location  does  not 
constitute  an  entry  within  the  meaning  of  the  act.  It  seems  to 
have  been  made  merely  to  exclude  others  and  upon  the  chance  that 
the  statute  may  be  open  to  the  construction  mentioned.  I  do  not 
believe  that  it  is  even  intended  to  be  seriously  pushed.  At  all  events, 
all  the  rest  of  the  shore,  except  as  stated,  remains  free  from  entry, 
thus  disposing  effectively  of  the  claim  that  a.  railroad  monopoly 
has  acquired  the  frontage  of  Controller  bay.  Whatever  may  be 
the  merits*  or  demerits  of  this  harbor,  it  has  not  passed  out  of  the 
control  of  the  Government. 

To  develop  it  at  all  it  will  be  necessary  to  construct  piers  or 
roadways  from  the  shore  out  over  the  shallow  flats  to  the  chan- 
nel I  have  described;  and  after  the  elimination  from  the  national 
forest  Ryan  se.cured  from  Congress,  without  apparent  objection 
from  any  source,  a  special  act  containing  many  provisions  for  the 
protection  of  the  public  interests,  permitting  him  to  construct  a  pier 
with  dockage  facilities  where  it  reaches  the  deeper  water.  Here, 
3  miles  from  the  shore,  he  proposes  to  create  a  harbor.  Similar 
facilities  can  be  created  at  other  points  along  the  shore  if  this 


ALASKAN    PROBLEMS  373 

should  be  desired,  and  by  dredging,  a  certain  amount  of  which 
Mr.  Ryan  admits  he  will  have  to  do,  facilities  equally  advantageous 
with  his  can  apparently  be  created,  if  desired.  Ice  from  the 
Bering  river  and  other  small  streams  forms  in  winter  and  collects 
in  the  shallow  waters  of  Controller  Bay.  Some  of  those  familiar 
with  Alaskan  conditions,  whose  opinions  are  entitled  to  weight, 
regard  this  ice  as  a  menace  to  the  harbor,  but  the  greatest  dis- 
advantage, aside  from  the  shallow  waters,  appears  to  be  conceded 
to  be  the  fierce  winds  which  sweep  down  over  the  bay  from  the 
glaciated  regions  on  shore.  Under  somewhat  similar  conditions 
elsewhere,  shipping  is  said  to  be  actually  blown  from  the  docks  in 
extreme  cases;  and  if  winds  of  this  character  should  blow  while 
vessels  were  attempting  to  enter  Controller  bay  the  danger  would 
be  great. 

Mr.  Ryan  has  recognized  the  difficulties  and  thinks  they  can  be 
met,  at  least  so  far  as  the  docks  are  concerned,  by  constructing  them 
so  that  ships  will  dock  with  their  bows  directly  facing  the  prevail- 
ing winds.  The  plans  which  he  has  recently  prepared  are  so  drawn. 
That  such  precautions  are  necessary  even  in  his  judgment  is  a  suf- 
ficient indication  of  the  importance  of  this  particular  problem.  If 
he  should  really  construct  a  road  and  extend  it  from  the  coal  fields 
to  a  connection  with  the  Copper  River  Railroad,  copper  ore  might 
be  diverted  either  by  enforced  or  voluntary  switching  arrangements 
to  smelters  established  in  the  coal  fields  themselves  or  at  Controller 
Bay,  but  these  smelters  would  not  possibly  be  as  available  for  the 
copper  ores  of  Prince  William  Sound  as  would  smelters  at  Cor- 
dova. For  the  reasons  which  I  have  thus  indicated,  I  am  unable 
to  see  how  a  railroad  at  Controller  bay  would  be  of  any  particular 
advantage  to  the  Alaska  syndicate  and  if  a  real  competitive  rail- 
road should  be  built,  it  would  serve  as  a  check  upon  the  Copper 
River  road.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  a  Government  railroad  is  de- 
sirable now  or  in  the  future,  there  is  ample  opportunty  for  it.  If 
the  Ryan  railroad  should  be  built  and  the  Government  desired  its 
acquisition,  the  opportunity  for  the  Government  to  build  a  com- 
petitive road  should  be  effective  in  preventing  an  exorbitant  price. 
Proper  Coal  Laws  Essential. 

However,  under  the  conditions  which  exist,  including  the  char- 
acter of  the  Bering  coal  fields,  the  present  state,  and  the  immedi- 
ate future  of  the  coal  market,  and  the  fact  that  the  Copper  River 
Railroad  is  already  in  the  field,  I  see  no  reason  why  the  Government 
should  at  this  time  take  upon  itself  the  unnecessary  financial  risks 
of  supplying  transportation.  If  railroad  rates  and  service  can  ever 


374         PROCEEDINGS   AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

be  effectively  regulated,  this  can  be  done  in  the  case  of  a  railroad 
carrying  but  a  single  commodity  between  fixed  points,  as  would  be 
the  case  with  the  Ryan  railroad,  or  carrying  but  few  commodities 
and  those  chiefly  in  bulk,  as  is  now  the  case  with  the  Copper  River 
Railroad,  and  is  likely  to  be  the  case  with  it  for  many  years  to 
come.  While  I  am  an  optimist  as  to  the  future  of  Alaska,  I  see  no 
reason  why  the  Alaska  syndicate  should  not  be  permitted  to  con- 
tinue the  enormously  expensive  experiment  to  which  its  present 
investment  has  already  committed  it  and  which  that  investment  pre- 
vents it  from  abandoning.  The  essential  thing  is  that  we  shall 
adopt  proper  coal  laws  under  which  monopoly  will  be  impossible 
and  that  we  shall  preserve  ample  opportunities  for  whatever  action 
by  the  Government  the  future  may  require.  The  immediately  im- 
portant thing  is  that  the  Bering  coal  field  should  be  open  to  wise 
development  so  that  it  may  supply  local  needs  and  afford  ample 
opportunity  for  supplying  any  market  for  this  particular  coal  which 
may  now  exist  or  which  it  may  be  possible  to  create  on  the  Pacific 
coast. 

My  visit  to  Alaska  has  led  me  to  take  a  far  greater  interest  in 
the  future  of  the  Matanuska  coal  field,  which  is  larger  in  extent, 
having  an  area  of  74  square  miles  or  47,360  acres,  better  in  coal, 
better  in  physical  condition,  and  freer  from  the  complications  of 
private  claims  than  is  true  at  Bering  river.  Against  these  advan- 
tages must  be  set  off  its  greater  -distance  from  the  sea,  but  this  very 
distance  connects  it  more  intimately  with  the  real  problem  of 
Alaskan  development — that  of  adequate  transportation  from  tide 
water  to  the  Yukon.  What  Alaska  needs  more  than  all  else  is  a 
trunk  line  railroad  from  the  ocean  to  the  great  interior  valleys  of 
the  Yukon  and  the  Tanana,  opening  up  the  country  so  that  its 
future  development  may  really  be  possible.  Today,  as  I  have  said, 
Alaska  is  a  country  of  large  probabilities,  minerally  and  agricul- 
turally. Mineral  resources  of  great  variety  and  extent  are  indi- 
cated by  such  surface  exploration  as  is  possible.  The  real  value 
of  these  mineral  indications,  however,  can  not  be  effectively  deter- 
mined while  the  cost  of  transporting  even  the  simplest  of  mining 
machinery  into  the  interior  is  practically  prohibitive  and  can  be 
justified  only  as  a  gigantic  gamble  by  men  of  sufficient  means  to 
pocket  their  losses.  The  vast  interior  valleys  are  covered  with  lux- 
uriant grasses  and  can  be  made  to  raise  cattle  and  sheep  and  even 
grain  if  proper  seed  and  proper  methods  are  experimentally  devel- 
oped by  scientific  agriculture.  But  agricultural  development  can 


ALASKAN    PROBLEMS  375 

not  go  forward  where  the  local  markets  are  small  and  scattered  and 
exportation  is  impossible. 

The  Matanuska  Field. 

The  Matanuska  coal  field  lies  north  of  Prince  William  Sound 
and  from  150  to  200  miles  from  Seward,  on  Resurrection  bay. 
It  is  known  to  contain  extensive  beds  of  coal  of  the  same  or  slightly 
superior  quality  to  that  of  Bering  river,  and  in  better  physical 
condition  both  as  to  the  coal  itself  and  as  to  the  obstacles  to  profitable 
mining.  The  country  is  not  so  broken,  faults  and  pinching  are  less 
in  evidence,  and  the  crushing  process  appears  to  have  gone  on  to  a 
much  less  extent.  A  far  less  percentage  of  the  field  has  been  en- 
tered by  private  claimants,  and  most  of  these  appear  to  be  clearly 
illegal  on  account  of  dummy  entries  and  other  violations  of  the 
law,  for  which  indictments  are  now  pending.  A  railroad  to  de- 
velop this  field  and  to  open  up  the  great  interior  valleys  has  been 
started  from  Seward,  which  has  by  far  the  best  harbor  and  the  best 
town  site  in  Alaska  which  I  saw  or  of  which  I  have  been  able  to 
obtain  any  knowledge.  The  town  of  Seward  lies  at  the  head  of 
Resurrection  bay,  which  is  a  magnificent  and  extensive  harbor, 
landlocked  and  free  from  ice,  and  already  selected  by  the  Gov- 
ernment as  a  naval  coaling  station,  and  where  smelter  operations 
may  be  one  of  the  future  industries. 

The  only  criticism  of  the  harbor  of  which  I  have  heard  is  that 
the  water  is  so  deep  that  docks  and  fixed  moorings  will  be  neces- 
sary for  perfect  safety,  but  as  this  is  also  true  of  the  harbor  of 
Seattle,  which  has  been  regarded  as  one  of  the  most  magnificent 
in  the  world,  it  seems  to  be  a  fault  which  closely  approaches  a  virtue. 
The  railroad  from  Seward — the  so-called  Alaskan  Central  or  Alas- 
kan Northern — at  present  extends  only  seventy-odd  miles  to  a  point 
on  Turnagain  Arm,  where  it  stopped  for  lack  of  funds  and  for 
various  other  reasons,  among  which  the  withdrawal  of  the  coal 
fields  from  entry  is  particularly  emphasized.  I  think,  however, 
that  its  financial  plans  afford  a  more  convincing  reason  for  its 
failure.  At  all  events,  it  has  passed  through  the  courts  into  the 
custody  of  its  bondholders,  who  are  not  particularly  eager,  if  they 
are  able,  to  finance  its  further  extension.  While  a  part  of  its  con- 
struction does  not  seem  wisely  adapted  to  the  transportation  of  coal 
or  other  heavy  freight,  I  believe  this  road  should  be  continued  on 
to  the  coal  fields  and  beyond  them  to  the  interior,  and  that  if 
private  interests  do  not  care  to  undertake  the  task  the  Govern- 
ment itself  should  do  so.  The  situation  here  is  not  like  that  in  the 
Copper  River  country.  No  large  financial  interests  are  back  of  the 


376         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

railroad ;  no  large  investments  have  been  made  which  ,it   will  be 
necessary  for  private  interests  to  protect. 

Such  a  railroad  as  I  have  suggested  will  pass  through  a  coun- 
try which  appears  to  have  large  agricultural  possibilities  as  well  as 
great  mineral  resources.  These  possibilities  and  resources,  how- 
ever, will  require  time  for  their  development.  The  adoption  of  a 
leasing  policy  will  take  away  from  the  promoters  of  such  a  road 
the  lure  of  great  gain  from  the  exploitation  'of  the  coal  fields. 
This  exploitation  clearly  should  be  prevented  in  the  public  interest. 
But  at  the  same  time,  the  Government  must  recognize  that  if  it 
withdraws  from  private  capital  this  incentive  for  railroad  con- 
struction the  Government  itself  must  assume  the  obligation  of 
making  possible  that  kind  of  development  upon  which  it  insists  for 
the  general  good.  It  has  been  urged  that  the  Government  should 
meet  this  objection  by  guaranteeing  the  payment  of  bonds  or  the 
interest  on  bonds  equal  to  the  cost  of  the  construction  of  the  road. 
I  can  see  no  advantage  whatever  in  this  policy.  If  the  Govern- 
ment is  to  guarantee  the  cost  of  construction,  I  see  no  reason  why 
the  Government  should  not  own  the  road  outright,  whether  it  op- 
erates it  or  leases  to  an  operating  company. 

Trunk  Line,  to  Yukon  Imperative  Need. 

If  a  plan  for  construction  at  the  joint  risk  and  joint  profit  of 
the  private  investor  and  of  the  public  along  the  lines  of  the  Chi- 
cago traction  ordinances  could  be  put  into  successful  operation, 
this  might  reconcile  the  conflicting  views  of  public  policy  as  to  the 
Government  ownership  of  railroads,  especially  if  the  Government's 
share  of  any  future  profits  should  be  commuted  into  an  equivalent 
reduction  of  the  rates  or  should  be  directly  expended  in  furnishing 
to  Alaska  the  other  means  of  transportation  of  which  it  is  and 
will  continue  to  be  so  much  in  need.  After  such  careful  considera- 
tion, however,  as  I  have  been  able  to  give  to  the  matter,  I  believe 
that  the  uncertainty  of  immediate  financial  return  will  prevent  the 
adoption  of  this  plan  and  that  the  imperative  need  of  immediate 
transportation  development  calls  for  the  construction  of 'at  least 
one  main  trunk  line  from  tidewater  to  the  Yukon,  which  can  better 
be  constructed  from  Resurrection  bay  through  the  Matanuska  coal 
fields  than  in  any  other  way.  There  seems  to  be  no  likelihood  that 
the  Copper  River  Railroad  will  be  extended  into  the  interior  for 
years  to  come,  and  even  then  its  route  would  probably  be  far 
removed  from  the  line  I  have  suggested. 

The  Matanuska  coal  should  be  brought  to  Seward  for  the  use 
of  our  naval  coaling  station,  and  a  mine  for  that  purpose  can  well 


ALASKAN    PROBLEMS  377 

be  opened  by  the  Government  on  the  Matanuska,  where  it  can  be 
made  to  serve  as  an  example  for  private  mining,  where  it  can  fur- 
nish information  and  serve  as  a  check  upon  the  profits  of  the  lessees 
under  Government  leases.  The  Secretary  of  the  Navy  authorizes 
rne  to  state  that  he  believes  there  should  be  reserved  a  sufficient 
portion  of  high-grade  Alaska  coal,  suitable  for  the  use  of  the  navy, 
to  be  mined  hereafter  for  this  express  purpose  under  the  Bureau 
of  Mines.  The  navy  department  is  now  conducting  a  test  of  the 
available  coals  in  the  Pacific  coast  states  with  the  result  that  none 
of  these  coals  have  been  found  suitable  for  naval  uses.  It  is  the 
intention  to  test  additional  coals  from  New  Mexico  and  Wyoming. 

I  have  made  some  inquiries  to  ascertain  whether  the  present 
owners  of  the  Alaska  Central  are  willing  to  give  any  assurances  that 
they  will  extend  that  railroad  through  the  coal  fields  to  the  interior 
in  the  near  future,  with  the  result  that  some  at  least  of  those  inter- 
ested in  it  have  indicated  a  preference  to  sell  the  railroad  to  the 
Government  for  the  face  of  the  outstanding  bonds,  which  amount 
to  some  $4,600,000.  I  assume  that  it  can  be  purchased  for  the 
real  value  of  the  road,  whatever  that  may  be,  and  that  it  will  not 
be  extended  by  its  present  owners. 

In  undertaking  railroad  construction  there  is  ample  precedent 
at  Panama,  and  it  must  always  be  borne  in  mind  that  as  a  matter 
of  principle  the  Government  is  not  thus  invading  the  legitimate 
domain  of  private  enterprise,  but  is  in  effect  simply  resuming  one 
of  its  proper  functions.  The  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States 
said  in  United  States  vs.  Joint  Traffic  Association  (171  U.  S.,  505- 
570)  :  "The  business  of  a  railroad  carrier  is  of  a  public  nature, 
and  in  performing  it  the  carrier  is  also  performing,^  to  a  certain 
extent,  a  function  of  government."  In  Talcott  vs.  Pine  Grove 
(23  Federal  Cases,  652),  the  United  States  Circuit  Court  for  the 
West  Division  of  Michigan,  said  that  railway  corporations  "exer- 
cise delegated  sovereign  rights"  and  are  "but  a  portion  of  the  public 
Government.  *  *  *  And  it  is  not  true,  we  submit,  that  it  is  in 
degree  only  that  these  franchises  differ  in  their  relations  to  the 
public  from  mills  and  inns,  as  is  said  in  People  vs.  Salem.  The 
one  is  private  property;  the  other  is  a  political  function,  which, 
when  resting  in  the  hands  of  government  where  originally  it  re- 
sided, or  delegated  still  for  the  same  public  use,  to  either  persons  or 
corporations,  ever  has  been,  and  of  right  may  be,  aided  by  taxa- 
tion. *  *  *  -  It  is  for  the  performance  and  regulation  of  this 
old  and  familiar  governmental  duty,  in  a  mode  deemed  by  the  leg- 
islature most  efficient  and  economical,  that  in  modern  times  railway 


378         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

and  other  corporations  have  been  created.  And  in  the  most  plenary 
and  critical  sense,  under  the  general  railroad  law  of  Michigan, 
they  are  parts  of  the  political  organism.  The  road,  once  construct- 
ed, is,  instanter  and  by  mere  force  of  the  grant  and  law,  embodied 
in  the  governmental  agencies  of  the  state  and  dedicated  to  public 
use.  All  and  singular  its  cars,  engines,  rights  of  ways,  and  prop- 
erty of  every  description,  real,  personal,  and  mixed,  are  but  a 
trust  fund  for  the  political  power,  like  the  functions  of  a  public 
office." 

Indeed,  the  most  important  features  of  our  railroad  law  are 
squarely,  based  and  depend  upon  this  theory  of  the  relation  of 
railroads  to  the  functions  of  government.  What  has  happened, 
then,  with  respect  to  railroads  is  simply  that  the  Government  has 
delegated  one  of  its  own  functions  to  private  agencies  for  what,  at 
the  time,  are  believed  to  be  considerations  of  wise  expediency.  If, 
for  reasons  of  equal  expediency,  the  Government  decides  at  any 
given  time  or  place  to  resume  its  true  function,  it  cannot  be  said  to 
be  in  any  sense  invading  the  field  of  private  enterprise. 

If  we  may  assume  that  some  of  the  coal  claims  which  have  been 
entered  in  Alaska  in  either  the  Matanuska  or  the  Bering  fields 
have  complied  with  the  law  and  should  be  allowed,  the  sugges- 
tions I  have  made  will  enable  us  to  compare  in  practical  operation 
the  development  of  coal  under  private  ownership,  under  Govern- 
ment leasehold,  and  under  the  direct  operation  of  the  Government 
itself.  We  shall  have  an  important  railroad  under  private  owner- 
ship, with  governmental  regulation,  to  compare  with  one  under 
public  ownership,  and  these  two  railroads  will  operate  in  separate 
fields  where  they  will  not  directly  conflict,  but  where  each  may  serve 
as  a  check  up'on  the  other,  and  the  advocates  of  both  methods  will 
doubtless  come  to  appreciate  more  fully  and  more  fairly  both  the 
difficulties  and  the  advantages  of  the  railroad  as  a  governmental 
agent. 

Methods  of  Opening  Coal  Fields. 

It  remains  only  to  consider  more  in  detail  the  methods  by 
which  the  coal  fields  should  be  opened.  Those  suggested  have  been 
the  sale  of  the  lands  in  fee,  their  development  under  lease  from 
the  Government,  and  their  operation  by  the  Government  itself.  I 
believe  that  the  time  has  passed  when  the  Government  should  con- 
vey an  unrestricted  title  to  its  coal  fields.  The  day  is  done  in  which 
the  Government  should  deliberately  encourage  the  unrestricted 
private  exploitation  of  the  sources  of  power.  To  impose  effective 
regulations  upon  these  sources  after  they  have  passed  to  private 


ALASKAN    PROBLEMS  379 

individuals  in  fee  is  exceedingly  difficult,  even  if  not  impossible. 
The  ownership  of  the  fee  carries  with  it  under  the  law  the  right 
of  unrestricted  sale,  and  many  regulations  which  are  desirable  in  the 
public  interest  can  be  imposed,  if  at  all,  only  after  radical  changes 
in  the  laws  and  prolonged  litigation  in  the  courts,  perhaps  only 
after  constitutional  amendments.  It  is  therefore  unwise,  and  in 
my  opinion  unnecessary,  to  sell  our  coal  lands  in  order  to  secure 
their  effective  development. 

On  the  other  hand,  direct  Government  operation,  including  the 
mining  and  the  selling  of  coal,  involves  such  deep  and  far-reaching 
changes,  both  of  policy  and  of  administration,  that  there  is  no  likeli- 
hood at  the  present  time  of  its  adoption  to  the  exclusion  of  private 
operation.  Unlike  the  Government  ownership  of  railroads,  public 
coal  mining  has  never  been  held  by  the  courts  to  be  a  function  of 
government.  It  would  be  regarded  by  many  sincere  and  disinter- 
ested citizens  as  an  invasion  of  the  field  of  private  enterprise,  and 
would  involve  such  general  and  uncompromising  opposition  that 
even  those  who  believe  in  its  adoption  as  a  matter  of  principle  should 
not  insist  upon  tying  up  the  coal  fields  of  Alaska  until  the  great 
economic  and  political  questions  which  are  involved  in  its  exclusive 
application  to  these  fields  have  been  fought  out  to  a  practical  con- 
clusion. The  true  function  of  government  is  not  merely  the  preser- 
vation of  public  order  or  the  regulation  of  the  conduct  of  indi- 
viduals, but  the  carrying  on  of  any  enterprise  which  will  promote  the 
welfare  of  the  community  as  a  whole  more  effectively  if  carried  on 
by  the  organized  community  than  if  left  to  the  voluntary  action  of 
individual  members  of  the  community.  But  to  determine  whether  a 
particular  activity  answers  this  test  depends  in  every  instance  on  a 
final  and  complete  analysis  involving  a  consideration  not  only  of 
immediate  results,  but  of  the  far-reaching  consequences  upon  hu- 
manity and  upon  the  social  order.  While,  therefore,  much  can  be 
said  in  favor  of  permitting  the  Government  to  enter  experimentally 
into  those  fields  upon  which  industrial  development  and  the  welfare 
of  society  depends,  which  perhaps  may  in  the  future  include  the 
development  and  distribution  of  power  and  the  means  by  which 
power  may  be  created,  I  do  not  believe  that  the  Government  alone 
should  preempt  these  fields  or  exclusively  control  their  development 
until  it  becomes  far  clearer  than  it  is  today  that  their  development 
by  private  enterprise  cannot  be  effectively  controlled.  For  this 
reason  I  am  opposed  to  the  policy  of  having  the  Government  alone 
own  and  mine  Alaskan  coal. 


380         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

I  believe  that  the  leasing  system  avoids  the  controversies  and 
the  difficulties  of  both  extremes  of  public  and  of  private  ownership. 
It  has  been  adopted  with  conspicuous  success  in  the  great  mining 
communities  of  Australia  and  New  Zealand.  It  is  now  the  estab- 
lished law  of  the  Yukon  territory  lying  in  Canada  just  across  the 
border  line  from  Alaska.  It  is  the  system  under  which  much  of 
the  privately  owned  coal  land  of  the  United  States  is  in  fact  today 
being  developed.  Under  it  we  can  insert  as  matters  of  contract  and 
as  conditions  to  which  the  lessee  voluntarily  consents  those  regula- 
tions and  requirements  which  promote  the  public  interest,  the  en- 
forcement of  some  of  which  by  mandatory  law  might  be  unconstitu- 
tional. By  making  the  terms  of  our  leases  liberal  we  can  make  them 
even  more  attractive  to  capital  than  if  we  adopt  the  policy  of  an 
outright  sale  of  the  fee. 

Outright  Sale  of  Coal  Lands,. 

Let  us  consider  for  a  moment  what  ordinarily  happens  with 
coal  land  which  is  sold  outright.  Comparatively  little  of  it  is  mined 
by  the  original  purchaser.  He  usually  disposes  of  his  title  to  a  suc- 
cession of  others,  each  of  whom  in  turn  adds  to  the  cost  of  his  pur- 
chase the  profit  in  consideration  of  which  he  sells,  and  with  increas- 
ing frequency  the  final  result  is  the  operation  of  the  coal  mines  by  a 
lessee,  who  must  pay  a  return  on  these  accumulated  profits  and  who 
adds  his  own,  transferring  the  burden  of  it  all  to  the  consumer. 
One  hundred  and  fifty-six  million  tons  of  coal,  or  34%  of  the  total 
production  of  the  United  States  for  the  year  1909,  were  mined 
from  lands  operated  under  private  leases,  and  these  leases  are  com- 
mon in  every  coal-mining  state,  naturally  much  more  so  in  some 
states  than  in  others.  Considering  the  areas  involved,  we  find  that 
in  West  Virginia,  in  the  great  Pocahontas  and  New  River  coal 
fields,  which  yield  the  finest  steaming  coals  of  the  continent,  about 
90%  of  the  area  in  the  Pocahontas  district  and  about  60%  of  that  in 
the  New  River  district  are  mined  on  a  private-lease  basis,  which 
pays  the  lessor  a  royalty  fee  averaging  10  cents  per  ton. 

In  the  Southern  Appalachian  coal  fields,  just  south  of  the  Poca- 
hontas region,  it  is  estimated  that  75%  of  the  area  is  mined  on  a 
lease  basis;  in  the  Hocking  Valley  region  of  Ohio,  75%;  in  Iowa, 
more  than  70%  ;  in  Arkansas,  60%  ;  and  in  Oklahoma,  nearly  all  of 
the  coal  land  is  operated  on  a  lease  basis. 

Thirty  Per  Cent  of  Coal  Land  Leased. 

Taking  all  of  our  principal  coal-mining  states,  the  census  figures 
for  1909  show  that  out  of  a  total  of  6,900,000  acres  of  coal  lands 
under  operation,  more  than  2,000,000  acres,  or  30%  of  the  whole, 


ALASKAN    PROBLEMS  381 

was  in  1909  operated  under  a  system  of  private  leases.  It  is  there- 
fore substantially  correct  to  say  that,  whether  we  like  it  or  not,  the 
choice  is  not  as  to  whether  we  shall  mine  our  coal  on  the  lease- 
hold system,  but  whether  we  shall  mine  it  under  leases  from  private 
owners  or  from  the  Government  direct.  That  the  consumer  has 
everything  to  gain  under  the  governmental  leasehold  must  be  ap- 
parent, for  the  Government  can  make  its  royalties  as  little  as  it 
chooses  and  it  has  no  invested  capital  and  no  unearned  increment 
on  which  to  pay  returns.  Opposition  is  to  be  expected  only  from 
those  who  wish  to  secure  our  coal  lands  for  stock  jobbing  or 
speculative  purposes  or  so  that  they  may  make  a  greater  profit  than 
is  essential  to  secure  immediate  development.  Indeed,  immediate 
development  can  be  assured  only  under  the  leasehold  system.  With- 
out it  there  is  no  reason  why  private  individuals  should  not  secure 
the  property  and  hold  it  out  of  development  until  they  can  take 
advantage  of  the  increasing  demands  of  the  future.  Expedients 
could  be  adopted  in  the  effort  to  enforce  development  by  requiring 
the  purchaser  to  mine  a  certain  amount  of  coal  or  to  expend  a  certain 
amount  of  money  in  developing  the  land  under  pain  of  forfeiting  his 
title  to  the  Government,  but  this,  after  all,  is  only  a  crude  and 
awkward  device  for  securing  what  can  be  far  more  effectively  se- 
cured by  means  of  lease.  Indeed,  these  devices  are  economically 
unsound,  for  they  compel  development  whether  the  immediate  mar- 
ket justifies  it  or  not.  The  leasing  system,  upon  the  other  hand,  can 
be  given  much  of  the  flexibility  necessary  for  meeting  automatically 
the  fluctuating  demands  of  the  market. 

The  opponents  of  the  leasing  system  delight  to  dwell  upon  the 
fact  "that  in  the  first  half  of  the  last  century  the  Federal  Govern- 
ment undertook  to  lease  the  lead  mines  on  the  public  domain  and 
that  the  effort  was  not  a  success  and  was  abandoned  in  1847,  but 
when  we  consider  the  conditions  under  which  the  attempt  was  made, 
and  especially  that  the  leases  were  limited  to  five  years,  with  a 
royalty  of  one-sixth  of  the  lead  for  Government  use ;  that  the  valid- 
ity of  the  leases  was  constantly  attacked  upon  the  ground  that  the 
statute  did  not  contain  the  necessary  provisions  for  carrying  it  into 
effect;  and  that  the  system  was  permeated  with  the  same  kind  of 
fraud  and  evasion  which  until  recently  characterized  the  operation 
of  certain  of  our  later  land  and  mineral  laws,  we  can  understand 
the  failure  and  that  the  experiment  is  of  no  value  whatever  in  de- 
termining the  merits  or  demerits  of  a  properly  drawn  and  properly 
enforced  law  for  the  leasing  of  the  public  coal  lands  of  today.  The 
whole  experiment  was  carried'  on  under  such  crude  and  inefficient 


382         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

methods  that  the  total  rental  received  by  the  Government  for  the 
four  years  ending  with  1844  was  onty  $6,35474,  while  the  expenses 
for  the  same  period  amounted  to  $26,111.11. 

A  few  persons  who  have  expressed  themselves  as  being  "un- 
alterably opposed"  to  a  leasing  system  for  the  coal  lands  of  Alaska 
have  stated  that  they  were  unalterably  opposed  to  it  because,  in  the 
first  place,  it  would  be  impossible  to  get  any  leasing  legislation 
through  Congress;  and  in  the  second  place,  if  a  leasing  bill  did 
pass  Congress,  it  would  be  impossible  to  get  anybody  to  work  coal 
lands  on  a  lease  basis.  I  need  not  discuss  at  this  time  what  Con- 
gress may  or  may  not  do,  except  to  say  that,  in  my  judgment,  Con- 
gress is  far  more  likely  to  pass  a  rational  leasing  measure  than  it  is 
to  throw  the  coal  fields  of  Alaska  open  for  unrestricted  private 
exploitation. 

Practicability  of  Leasing  System. 

As  to  the  second  of  these  objections,  whether  or  not  the  leasing 
of  the  coal  lands  in  Alaska  is  a  practicable  proposition,  let  us  see 
what  the  experience  has  been  with  reference  to  such  a  proposition 
in  our  own  and  other  countries.  A  similar  objection  was  raised  whtn 
it  was  propose-d  to  lease  the  coal  lands  in  New  Zealand  and  in  the 
Australian  States,  such  as  New  South  Wales,  West  Australia, 
Queensland,  Victoria,  and  Tasmania.  In  each  of  these  far-away 
countries  the  local  conditions  in  some  respects  resembled  those  in 
Alaska.  They  were  remote  from  commercial  centers,  with  meager 
or  no  transportation  facilities,  and  industrial  development  was  car- 
ried on  under  great  difficulties.  It  was  argued  in  each  of  these 
countries  that  the  great  need  was  capital  and  development,  and  that 
the  coal  fields  should  be  thrown  wide  open  to  all  who  were  willing 
to  risk  their  capital  in  helping  to  open  up  and  build  up  the  country. 
In  some  cases  the  sale  of  the  fee  was  tried;  but  the  wise  Anglo- 
Saxons  of  that  region  thought  it  better  as  a  matter  of  national  policy 
to  keep  the  ultimate  control  of  these  essential  resources  in  the  hands 
of  the  State,  and  they  adopted  a  leasing  system  as  the  only  safe 
means  of  doing  this.  And  what  was  the  result?  The  coal  lands  in 
each  of  these  countries  have  been  taken  up  and  are  being  devel- 
oped and  mined  under  the  leasing  system;  and  under  that  system 
coal  is  not  only  being  mined  for  home  consumption,  but  it  is  being 
exported  to  our  own  Pacific  coast,  and  to  other  countries  bordering 
on  the  Pacific.  The  difficulties  that  stood  in  the  way  of  leasing  the 
coal  lands  in  those  countries  were  imaginary  difficulties,  and  they 
disappeared  when  the  matter  was  put  to  a  practical  test. 


ALASKAN    PROBLEMS  383 

Again,  in  Nova  Scotia  and  in  the  far-away  Yukon  country, 
where  the  conditions  for  investment  are  even  more  unfavorable 
than  they  are  in  many  parts  of  Alaska,  those  who  were  opposed  to 
the  adoption  of  a  leasing  system  said  that  it  would  be  impossible 
to  lease  public  coal  lands  on  any  basis ;  but  when  the  experiment  was 
tried,  parties  came  forward  to  take  out  the  leases  and  are  operating 
the  coal  lands. 

In  our  own  country,  in  the  states  of  Wyoming  and  Colorado, 
when  it  was  proposed  that  these  states  should  lease  their  coal  lands 
instead  of  selling  them  outright,  it  was  argued  that  nobody  would 
take  out  the  leases.  But  experience  has  shown  otherwise.  In  Colo- 
rado in  1900,  in  addition  to  the  large  acreage  of  coal  lands  held  in 
private  ownership,  nearly  6,000  acres  of  state  coal  lands  were 
operated  under  lease,  and  in  1910  nearly  20,000  acres  of  the  state 
coal  lands  were  being  operated  under  such  leases,  with  a  royalty 
charge  of  10  cents  per  ton.  In  Wyoming  today  more  than  3,000,000 
acres  of  state  lands  of  all  kinds  are  being  operated  under  5,700 
leases.  While  only  a  small  portion  of  this  acreage  relates  to  coal, 
the  state  statistics  do  not  indicate  what  this  proportion  is. 

With  records  at  hand  giving  the  results  of  a  large  volume  and 
great  variety  of  experience  covering  the  operations  of  both  private 
and  public  coal-land  leases  in  our  own  and  many  other  countries,  it 
should  not  be  difficult  to  decide  upon  the  ordinary  conditions  and 
requirements  that  should  be  incorporated  in  a  leasing  system  for 
the  Alaskan  coal  fields — working  conditions  that  will  meet  the 
legitimate  demands  of  the  prospector,  the  investor,  and  the  oper- 
ator, safeguard  the  health  and  life  of  the  mine  worker  and  the 
property  of  the  Government,  to  the  end  that  the  public  may  secure 
an  adequate  supply  of  fuel  at  the  lowest  cost  consistent  with  these 
conditions. 

Price  Regulation  by  Government  Umvise. 

Some  of  the  bills  which  have  been  recently  introduced  in  Con- 
gress provide  that  the  Interstate  Commerce  Commission  shall 
regulate  the  prices  at  which  the  coal  mined  under  these  leases  is 
sold  not  only  by  the  miner  but  by  the  middleman  and  the  retailer  to 
the  consumer.  Important  as  is  the  question  of  protecting  the  con- 
sumer, it  seems  unwise  that  price  regulation  by  the  Government 
should  be  insisted  upon  as  a  necessary  feature  of  a  coal-leasing  law 
for  Alaska.  Obviously  such  regulation  must  extend  to  the  re- 
tailer if  it  is  to  do  anything  but  enable  the  middleman  to  make 
the  profit  denied  to  the  miner.  Regulation  of  this  sort  would  be 
a  new  departure  in  either  state  or  federal  administration.  It  raises 


384         PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

fundamental  questions  of  public  policy  about  which  differences  exist 
that  are  as  yet  uncompromising.  It  would  doubtless  prevent  any 
early  action  by  Congress.  Certainly  if  enacted  in  the  form  pre- 
sented in  these  bills,  which  merely  declare  the  general  principle  and 
leave  all  of  the  real  difficulties  to  be  worked  out  by  the  commis- 
sion and  the  courts,  it  would  prove  a  serious,  if  not  prohibitive, 
barrier  to  the  development  of  a  new  country  and  a  new  and  uncer- 
tain market.  Under  these  conditions  it  would  seem  a  sufficient 
undertaking  to  inaugurate  a  new  system  of  tenure,  without  im- 
posing upon  Alaska  the  additional  difficulties  of  the  administration 
of  a  hitherto  untried  attempt  to  settle  by  public  regulation  what 
would  constitute  a  reasonable  profit  for  the  miner,  the  whole- 
saler, and  the  retailer  of  coal.  It  is  especially  hard  to  understand 
how  those  who  doubt  the  success  of  railroad  regulation  in  Alaska 
can  now  advocate  entering  the  more  difficult  field  of  the  regulation 
of  commodities.  Price  regulation  has  been  suggested  by  some 
representatives  of  large  corporate  interests  as  a  safeguard  under 
which  the  modern  economic  tendency  toward  consolidation  might 
be  safely  permitted  to  continue,  but  the  bills  referred  to  do  not 
propose  to  treat  Alaska  coal  on  the  principle  of  a  regulated  private 
monopoly.  This  question  should  be  left  for  more  mature  consid- 
eration as  a  question  of  broad  general  policy,  applicable,  if  at  all,  to 
the  states  as  well  as  to  Alaska. 

It  may  be  practicable  to  provide  in  connection  with  the  renewal 
of  leases  at  their  termination  that  such  renewals  shall  be  subject 
to  the  then  existing  laws  applicable  thereto.  This  principle  has 
been  successfully  adopted  in  the  Australian  leases.  Our  first 
leases  can  well  be  made  more  favorable  than  those  which  follow, 
and  if  they  are  for  resonable  but  fixed  periods,  and  if  we  lease  only 
as  much  of  our  coal  lands  as  may  be  required  for  the  existing  mar- 
ket and  its  effective  extension,  we  can  thus  proceed  experimentally, 
correcting  early  mistakes  and  meeting  future  conditions  as  they 
arise. 

The  prime  requisites  of  a  leasing  system  are  that  only  suffi- 
cient coal  lands  should  be  leased  to  meet  the  existing  market  and 
encourage  its  development ;  that  the  quantity  leased  to  any  one 
lessee  should  be  limited  to  the  amount  that  can  be  profitably  mined 
as  a  unit  and  yet  be  large  enough  to  attract  investors ;  that  the  lessee 
shall  pay  his  royalty  as  he  mines  his  coal;  that  this  shall  annually 
amount  to  at  least  a  fixed  minimum  which  will  make  it  unprofitable 
for  him  to  hold  the  land  without  production ;  that  he  shall  mine  his 
coal  without  unnecessary  waste  and  with  due  regard  to  the  health 


ALASKAX    PROBLEMS  385 

and  safety  of  his  employes ;  that  he  shall  not  engage  directly  or 
indirectly  in  any  combinations,  agreements,  or  understandings  to 
control  the  price  of  coal,  and  that  the  revenues  derived  by  the 
Government  shall  not  be  used  as  a  source  of  federal  revenue  or  as 
a  substitute  for  taxation,  but  shall  be  devoted  to  the  development  of 
the  state  or  territory  in  which  the  coal  is  mined.  These  at  least 
are  the  principal  features  which  should  be  embodied  in  a  leasing 
law. 

.lustralia  ami  \cw  Zealand  j:a\'or  Leases. 
From  the  information  which  I  have  at  hand,  I  infer  that  in 
Australia  and  New  Zealand  the  quantity  embraced  within  a  single 
lease  does  not  seem  to  be  limited,  but  reliance  is  placed  upon  the 
requirements  which  make  it  unprofitable  for  a  tenant  to  lease  more 
land  than  he  really  develops.  That  both  the  Government  and  the 
coal  operators  are  believers  in  the  leasing  system  is  apparent  from 
its  universal  application  and  from  the  investigation  made  in  1907 
and  1908  at  the  instance  of  President  Roosevelt  by  Arthur  C. 
Yeatch,  of  the  Geological  Survey.  With  regard  to  the  conditions  in 
Western  Australia,  he  says: 

At  Kalgoorlie  I  found  the  mining  men  unanimous  and  emphatic  in 
the  indorsement  of  the  statement  that  the  leasing  system  is  a  better 
method  of  promoting  mining  development  than  freehold.  The  views  of 
Mr.  Richard  Hamilton,  President  of  the  Chamber  of  Mines  and  Manager 
of  the  Great  Boulder  Proprietary  Co.  mine,  one  of  the  richest  gold 
mines  of  the  world,  carry  great  weight,  as  they  represent  the  views  of 
a  man  who  is  not  only  a  mining  engineer,  but  a  lawyer,  a  man  with' 
wide  experience,  and  one  who  speaks  only  after  careful  consideration, 
and  then  with  mature  judgment.  Man  after  man  in  the  field  said:  "See 
Hamilton;  he  knows  what  swe  think;  he  knows  the  conditions;  and 
what  he  tells  you  may  be  taken  as  the  opinion  of  the  mining  men  of  this 
country."  Mr.  Hamilton  has  spent  considerable  time  in  America  in 
studying  our  mining  conditions,  and  is  emphatic  in  the  belief  that 
mining  development  is  promoted  more  by  the  western  Australian  lease- 
hold system  than  by  the  American  freehold. 

In  view  of  these  facts  one  may  confidently  assert  that  the  mining 
law  of  Western  Australia  is,  with  minor  exceptions,  regarded  as  quite 
satisfactory  by  the  mining  interests  of  the  country,  and  that  in  the 
opinion  of  the  mining  men  development  is  promoted  more  by  a  lease- 
hold than  a  freehold  tenure.  *  *  * 

1.  In   Western   Australia    the    population   is    largely    made    up    of 
those  interested  in  mining. 

2.  Western  Australia  is  a  country  of  great  mineral  wealth,  having 
produced  in  each  of  the  last  eight  years  between  1,500,000  and  2,000,000 
ounces  of  fine  gold,  or  several  times  that  produced  by  Alaska,  and  has 
for  the  same  period  had  a  greater  total  annual  mineral  production  than 
any  of  the  other  Australian  States  or  New  Zealand,  except  New  South 
Wales,  which  surpassed  it  in  1906  and  1907. 

3.  It  contains  enormous  areas  yet  undeveloped,  the  state  having 
an  area  of  almost  a  million   square  miles,  or  more  than  the   combined 
areas  of  California,  Oregon,  Washington,   Nevada,   Idaho,   Utah,   Colo- 
rado, Wyoming,  and  Montana,  and  a  total  population  of  less  than  one- 
twentieth    of   that    of    all    these    states,    or   less    than    that    of   the    single 
state  of  Utah. 


386         PROCEEDiXGS    AMERICAN    MIXING    CONGRESS 

4.  It  is  a  country  in  which  mineral  lands  were  sold  outright,  and 
its  mineral  laws  have  therefore  been  evolved  from  a  basis  similar  to  that 
which  now  is,  and  for  many  years  past  has  been,   commonly  accepted 
as  the  rule  and  practice  in  the  United  States. 

5.  The  desire  of  the  Government  to  promote  and  encourage  the 
development  of  its  mineral  wealth  in  every  way  is  emphatically  shown 
by  the  policy  of  Government  aid.     This  policy  in  the  past  has  involved 
enormous  expenditure  in  connection  with  water  supplies  for  the  mining 
districts,   the   Coolgardie   water   system   alone    (built   to   pump   5,000,000 
gallons   a   day   351    miles   to   an   elevation    1,200   feet    above   the    supply 
point)  involving  an  expenditure  on  the  part  of  the  Government  of  over 
$18,000,000.     *     *     * 

The  mining  act  of  1904  must  therefore  be  regarded  not  as  a  theo- 
retical attempt'  of  political  economists,  but  as  the  matured  law  of  a  state 
which  has  had  large  practical  experience  in  mining  matters,  in  which, 
in  fact,  mining  is  the  principal  industry  and  in  which  vast  areas  await 
settlement  and  development;  a  state  which  has,  moreover,  in  many 
ways  conclusively  demonstrated  its  desire  to  permit  and  encourage  the 
development  and  settlement  of  its  territory. 

And  with  regard  to  New  Zealand  he  reports  that — 

The  net  result  of  the  administration  of  the  minerals  contained  in 
the  public  domain  of  the  United  States  and  New  Zealand  for  the  past 
60  years  is  that,  while  both  have  provided  for  the  sale  of  mineral  lands 
and  neither  has  reserved  minerals  in  patents  or  grants,  in  the  United 
States  all  the  mineral  production  is  either  derived  from  freehold  land 
or  land  that  is  in  process  of  becoming  freehold,  while  in  New  Zealand 
90  per  cent  of  the  whole  mineral  production  comes  from  areas  held 
under  lease  from  the  Government.  Truly,  this  result  but  corroborates 
the  statement  called  forth  by  the  investigation  in  Tasmania  that  the 
patriotic  and  efficient  administration  of  the  land  affairs  of  a  country  is 
not  a  human  impossibility. 

The  country  in  which  these  results  have  been  attained  is  one  of  no 
mean  mineral  wealth,  and  is  one  in  which  the  mining  industry  is  in 
a  very  healthy  and  progressive  condition.  It  contains,  in  the  Waihi 
gold  mine,  the  most  productive  gold  mine  in  Australasia  and  the  third 
or  fourth  in  the  world.  It  has  the  third  most  productive  colliery  com- 
pany in  Australasia,  and  is  second  only  to  New  South  Wales  in  its 
total  coal  production.  It  has  been  the  center  of  several  gold  rushes, 
which,  following  those  in  California  and  Victoria,  to  some  degree  de- 
populated the  Victorian  fields  and  attracted  many  from  California.  Tt 
has  produced  in  a  little  over-  50  years  more  than  $350,000,000  worth  of 
gold,  and,  with  but  little  over  one-sixth  the  area  of  Alaska,  produced  in 
1905  three-fourths  as  much  gold,  five  times  as  much  silver,  and  many 
times  as  much  coal.  It  has  one-third  more  area  and  about  three  times 
the  population  of  Utah,  and  in  1905  produced  one-quarter  more  coal, 
about  twice  the  amount  of  gold,  and  one-eleventh  the  quantity  of  silver. 

The  comparison  with  the  coal  production  of  Alaska  is,  of 
course,  of  no  consequence  as  the  coal  lands  in  Alaska  were  not  really 
open  to  development  in  1905.  This,  however,  does  not  detract  from 
the  value  to  us  of  the  experience  of  New  Zealand.  In  the  Yukon 
territory  of  Canada  coal  lands  are  now  leased  by  the  government 
for  a  term  of  21  years  at  an*  annual  rental  of  $i  an  acre,  and  hot 
more  than  2,560  acres  can  be  leased  by  one  applicant.  The  royalty 
is  5  cents  per  ton  on  the  merchantable  output  of  the  mine.  Here, 
as  in  Alaska,  facilities  for  transportation  are  necessary  before  any 
extensive  development  can  be  expected. 


ALASKAN    PROBLKMS  387 

Shortly  before  I  went  to  Alaska  I  improved  an  opportunity 
to  discuss  the  question  of  its  coal  development  with  a  group  of 
prominent  coal  operators  in  the  state  of  Pennsylvania,  and  I  was 
surprised  to  find  that  they  were  unanimously  of  the  opinion  that 
the  leasing  system  should  be  adopted  and  that  only  sufficient  land 
should  be  leased  to  meet  the  demands  of  the  market  and  provide 
the  incentive  for  developing  that  market  in  a  vigorous  and  rational 
manner. 

Prompt  Congressional  Action  Desire  of  Alaska. 

When  I  reached  Cordova  I  was  presented  with  a  series  of  reso- 
lutions adopted  by  the  Cordova  Chamber  of  Commerce  expressing 
its  disapproval  of  a  leasing  system  for  Alaska  coal  lands.  Since  my 
return  to  the  states  I  have  received  from  the  Chamber  of  Com- 
merce a  most  courteous  statement  to  the  effect  that  after  further 
careful  consideration  the  chamber  did  not  now  desire  to  be  con- 
sidered as  opposed  to  a  leasing  system,  and  suggesting  certain  re- 
quirements or  conditions  which  it  believed  should  be  incorporated 
in  leases  if  such  a  system  is  adopted.  What  is  desired  in  Alaska  is 
prompt  action  by  Congress  in  some  direction  that  will  promote 
development. 

I  have  been  equally  interested  in  receiving  a  resolution  adopted 
by  the  executive  committee  of  an  important  organization  in  the  oil 
industry  of  the  state  of  California  stating  the  conviction  that  a 
leasing  system  was  the  only  way  likely  to  be  found  out  of  the  ex- 
isting situation  and  urging  its  members  to  devote  their  attention 
to  a  consideration  of  the  proper  terms  to  be  embodied  in  a  leasing 
law.  I  have  also  received  from  the  Philadelphia  section  of  the 
Mining  and  Metallurgical  Society  of  America,  which  embraces  in 
its  membership  some  of  the  most  experienced  and  distinguished  coal 
mining  engineers  in  the  country,  a  set  of  resolutions  adopted  at  its 
meeting  on  the  I7th  of  this  month,  after  preliminary  submission 
by  mail  to  its  members  and  an  extended  discussion  at  the  meeting. 
These  resolutions  read  as  follows: 

Your  committee  find  the  following  conditions  existing  in  the  ter- 
ritory of  Alaska  relative  to  its  coal  resources: 

First.  It  is  essential  for  the  proper  development  of  Alaska  that  its 
coal  fields  be  opened  for  commercial  use  without  further  delay. 

Second.  There  are  now  known  to  exist  in  Alaska  but  two  rela- 
tively small  fields  containing  high-grade  Navy  fuel,  and  inasmuch  as  the 
Government  now  possesses  no  original  source  of  such  supply  on  the 
Pacific  coast,  it  is  desirable  in  the  interests  of  national  defense  that  a 
selected  area  of  these  fields  be  held  and  operated  under  the  direct  con- 
trol of  the  Government. 

Third.  It  is  in  the  interest  of  conservation,  economic  operation, 
and  due  regard  to  the  public  welfare,  as  well  as  to  the  operator,  that  coal 


388          PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN"    -MINING    CONGRESS 

lands  in  Alaska  be  leased  and  that  these  leases  be  made  for  all  the  coal 
in  the  ground. 

Fourth.  The  royalties  should  be  low  and  based  on  percentage  of 
selling  price  of  the  coal  at  the  mines. 

Fifth.  The  minimum  annual  royalty  should  be  nominal  for  the 
first  two  or  three  years  after  the  execution  of  the  lease,  in  order  to  per- 
mit and  encourage  the  installation  of  efficient  and  durable  equipment. 
After  that;  period  the  minimum  per  acre  should  increase  more  rapidly 
than  the  area  increases. 

For  example,  the  minimum  royalty  for  5,000  acres  should  be  several 
times  more  per  acre  than  for  1,000  acres.  Such  a  plan  would  tend  to 
prevent  the  tying  up  of  large  areas  of  undeveloped  coal  territory. 

Sixth.  A  due  diligence  and  forfeiture  clause  to  effect  continuous 
work  should  be  included  in  the  lease. 

Seventh.  Leasehold  in  coal  land  shall  include  all  necessary  mining 
rights  and  agricultural  rights  to  the  surface. 

Eighth.  Leases  should  not  be  given  for  less  than  160  acres,  and  in 
shape  should  be  square,  their  boundaries  being  east  and  west  and  north 
and  south.  In  surveyed  territory  the  boundary  lines  must  conform  to 
governmental  subdivisions  and  consist  of  four  contiguous  40-acre  piats. 

Ninth.  It  should  be  clearly  recognized  as  a  basic  principle  that  the 
value  of  coal  lands  in  Alaska  to  the  Nation  lies  more  in  their  use  for  in- 
dustrial, commercial,  and  naval  purposes  than  in  the  royalties  to  be 
derived  therefrom. 

Tenth.  It  is  desirable  that  the  revenue  obtained  from  coal  royal- 
ties revert  to  the  benefit  of  the  territory. 

Eleventh.  The  quality  of  Alaska  coal  varies  from  poor  lignite  to 
high-grade  semi-bituminous  and  anthracite.  The  physical  character  of 
the  seams  also  varies,  the  best  coals  being  seriously  and  unfavorably 
affected  by  the  geologic  structure.  The  high-grade  coals  of  Alaska, 
which  are  now  available  for  development  under  the  present  state  of 
the  art  of  mining  and  utilizing  coal,  are  limited  in  quantity,  notwith- 
standing the  exaggerated,  reports  to  the  contrary  which  have  appeared 
in  the  public  press. 

Resolved,  That  your  committee  is  of  the  opinion  that  the  present 
coal-mining  conditions  in  Alaska  are  unsatisfactory  and  detrimental  to 
public  welfare  and  that  laws  should  be  enacted,  based  upon  the  above 
principles;  be  it  further 

Resolved,  That  the  committee  recommends  that  this  resolution  be 
adopted  as  an  expression  of  the  views  of  the  Philadelphia  section  of 
the  Mining  and  Metallurgical  Society. 

I  have  already  stated  that  Director  Holmes,  of  the  Bureau  of 
Mines,  and  his  associates  have  personally  visited  both  the  Bering 
and  the  Matanuska  coal  fields,  and  I  am  glad  to  be  able  to  say  that 
Dr.  Holmes  has  read  this  address  and  concurs  in  its  statements  of 
fact  and  in  its  recommendations.  That  they  are  infallible  I  do  not 
claim.  It  may  include  inaccuracies  of  statement  and  more  serious 
mistakes;  but  these  I  reserve  the  right  to  correct  whenever  I  dis- 
cover them  or  whenever  new  facts  or  more  mature  consideration 
lead  me  to  a  different  conclusion.  For  the  present  they  are  offered 
as  definite  suggestions  for  a  policy  under  which  the  territory  of 
Alaska  may  be  immediately  opened  for  wise  and  vigorous  de- 
velopment. 

I  have  been  greatly  pleased  with  the  fair-mindedness  and  pub- 
lic spirit  of  the  Alaskan  people  on  this  subject.  I  believe  back  of 


ALASKAN    PROBLEMS  389 

their  naturally  great  and  justifiable  desire  for  immediate  action 
they  want  done  in  this  matter  whatever  will  in  the  end  prove  best 
for  Alaska  as  a  wrjole,  without  regard  to  special  individual  or 
corporate  interests ;  and  I  believe  that  Congress  and  the  American 
people  as  a  whole  will  be  in  accord  with  that  purpose. 

The  members  of  the  American  Mining  Congress  can  do  much 
i"  aid  in  carrying  that  purpose  into  effect. 


The  Relation  of  Congress  to  the  Mining  Industry. 

BY    HON.    MARTIN    D.    FOSTER, 
ril. MILAIAX    OF    THE    HOUSE    COMMITTEE    ON    MINES    AND    MINING. 


I  am  somewhat  at  a  loss  in  appearing  before  you  on  this 
occasion,  especially  when  I  see  before  me  so  many  men  who  are 
practical  in  the  matter  of  mining.  My  visit  to  this  Congress  at  this 
particular  time  has  been  of  great  interest  to  me.  I  have  heard  sub- 
jects relating  to  mining  discussed  in  a  most  vigorous  manner.  I  have 
heard  subjects  which  concerned  Congress  discussed  in  a  way  that  led 
me  to  believe  that  the  speaker  believed  what  he  said.  I  have  been 
interested  because  I  hope  that  this  meeting  will  be  instructive  to  the 
people  because  the  people  of  this  country  have  an  interest  in  mining 
affairs  wherever  they  may  be.  We  have  heard  much  today  of  the 
Bureau  of  Mines,  and  I  am  glad  to  know  and  to  say  to  you  that  I 
believe  that  that  bureau  has  just  begun  its  work.  Under  the  leader- 
ship of  Dr.  Holmes,  who  is  enthusiastic  in  his  work,  aided  by  the 
capable  assistants  he  has  about  him,  and  with  the  proper  means  that 
ought  to  be  given  him,  I  am  sure  that  he  will  accomplish  much  in 
the  line  of  work  that  he  has  undertaken. 

Originally  the  chief  object  of  the  Bureau  of  Mines  was  to  con- 
serve the  lives  of  those  who  worked  in  the  mines.  During  its  brief 
existence  of  one  year  much  has  been  accomplished,  and  in  a  few 
years  I  hope  that  it  can  be  said  of  the  United  States  that  there  is 
less  loss  of  life  and  fewer  accidents  than  any  other  country  in  all  the 
world. 

We  believe  that  with  the  proper  education  of  miners,  of  the 
operators  and  of  the  people  generally  that  mine  accidents  may  be 
reduced  to  a  minimum,  that  the  proper  apparatus  may  be  at  hand 
whenever  an  accident  does  occur  in  a  mine  that  will  still  further 
reduce  the  loss  of  life.  But  there  is  further  work  along  these  lines. 
It  has  been  a  question  in  Congress  for  at  least  five  years,  according 
to  my  experience,  and  there  has  been  agitated  the  question  of  mining 
schools  in  all  the  states  and  territories  of  this  Union.  I  am  glad  that 
we  have  made  some  progress  at  least,  and  I  hope  that  in  the  future 
we  may  see  the  establishment  by  federal  aid,  where  they  are  not 
already  established,  and  where  they  are  that  they  may  be  given  aid  so 
that  this  great  work  of  educating  young  men  in  mining  may  go  for- 
ward to  better  and  higher  results  than  those  today.  You  are  all 


RIf.LATI.OX   OF   COXGRESS  TO   MIX1XG   INDUSTRY       391 

familiar  with  the  agricultural  colleges  and  how  they  were  given  aid  a 
long  time  ago.  You  have  seen  these  colleges  grow  and  grow  until 
they  have  been  made  powerful  institutions  of  learning  in  the  country. 

It  was  told  to  me  by  Mr.  George  W.  Hill,  who  was  in  Washing- 
ton City  and  in  charge  of  the  division  of  publications,  that  he  used 
to  come  to  Illinois  and  try  to  talk  to  the  president  of  the  agricultural 
college,  in  an  endeavor  to  learn  what  he  was  doing  at  Champaign, 
and  he  said  that  he  could  hardly  get  him  to  speak  to  him  at  all  about 
the  students  that  he  had  or  of  the  college  he  was  conducting.  He 
eventually  found  the  reason  why,  and  that  was  that  he 'had  three 
students  and  they  met  in  the  basement  of  the  University.  I  am  glad 
to  say  that  under  state  and  federal  aid  that  this  institution  has  grown 
until  we  have  a  thousand  men  being  educated  year  after  year  in  the 
science  of  agriculture.  This  condition  ought  to  exist  in  mining,  be- 
cause next  to  agriculture  comes  the  industry  of  mining  in  this  coun- 
try. I  know  you  are  enthusiastic  in  your  work  and  I  hope  that  you 
may  put  the  same  enthusiasm  into  your  work  with  the  national  con- 
gress to  put  through  a  bill  to  give  aid  to  mining  schools  in  all  the 
states. 

.llaskan  Questions  to  Come  Before  Congress. 

We  have  now  in  the  committee  of  which  I  have  the  honor  to  be 
chairman,  sub-committees  appointed  who  are  expected  to  take  up 
these  different  questions  and  report  early  at  the  next  session  of 
Congress.  I  heard  much  today  of  the  mining  interests  of  Alaska, 
and  T  would  not  speak  of  this  in  view  of  the  fact  that  my  good 
friend,  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior,  is  here  now,  except  that  these 
questions  will  come  before  the  next  session  of  Congress,  and  I  hope 
that  some  settlement  may  be  made  of  this  great  question.  I  am  glad 
to  say  that  there  is  a  sub-committee  working  upon  this  question  of 
mining  and  certain  mining  laws  in  Alaska,  which  I  hope  when  put 
in  operation,  will  prove  to  all  the  states  what  a  model  mine  may  be 
when  established  under  the  federal  control  of  this  government. 

r.ut  I  want  to  remind  the  American  Mining  Congress  of  this, 
that  while  I  am  in  sympathy  with  all  that  has  been  said  here  as  to 
the  speedy  opening  of  the  coal  mines  of  Alaska,  because  I  believe 
that  those  people  in  that  faroff  country  are  entitled  to  the  fuel  that 
is  stored  up  there,  I  want  to  emphasize  this  fact  upon  you  and  the 
American  people,  that  I  believe  that  any  law  which  is  proposed 
cannot  pass  Congress  unless  it  provides  for  the  conservation  of  the 
great  wealth  in  that  faroff  country.  Proper  conservation,  my 
friends,  for  the  people  of  this  country  believe  in  proper  conserva- 
tion. 


392          PROCEEDINGS    . \.MKRICAN    MINING    CONGRESS 

It  may  be  said  that  Alaska  should  be  treated  as  the  other  terri- 
tories of  this  country  were  treated,  but  I  want  to  remind  you  that 
after  passing  through  numbers  of  years  during  which  our  resources 
have  been  squandered,  that  we  have  come  now  to  a  time  when  we 
are  getting  down  to  the  bottom.  We  have  Alaska  left  and  this  must 
be  preserved,  that  the  people  may  have  the  benefit  of  its  resources. 

I  remember  this,  my  friends,  that  it  cost  the  government  more 
than  $100,000  to  determine  what  water  might  be  taken  from  a 
stream,  and  then,  when  that  water  was  taken,  a  franchise  was  given 
to  a  water*  company, — two  of  them,  I  might  say, — who  then  com- 
bined and  had  the  absolute  control  for  a  period  of  99  years  without 
one  cent  accruing  to  the  national  government  or  any  one  else,  and 
they  charged  the  people  of  the  community  in  which  that  water 
power  was  delivered  what  they  saw  fit,  and  those  people  were  help- 
less to  do  anything  for  themselves. 

I  believe,  my  friends,  it  is  our  duty,  I  believe  it  is  the  duty  of 
Congress  in  all  fairness  and  right  and  justice  to  the  people  of  Alaska 
and  of  right  and  justice  to  the  people  of  this  country,  that  proper 
conservation  o'n  a  proper  plan  should  be  evolved  whereby  this  great 
treasure  may  be  retained  and  preserved  for  the  people  and  not  fall 
into  the  hands  or  monopoly  of  one,  two,  three  or  half  a  dozen  men 
who  use  it  for  a  selfish  purpose. 

Leasing  System  May  be  Solution. 

Any  one  who  read  the  proceedings  of  the  last  session  of 
Congress  could  get  some  idea  of  what  conservation  means.  I  would 
say  tonight,  good  friends  from  Alaska,  that  you  are  clamoring  that 
these  mines  should  be  opened,  and  I  see  you  have  a  reason  for  so 
doing.  I  agree  with  you  in  that,  but  I  want  to  say  to  you  that  there 
are  other  places  in  the  United  States,  places  in  our  own  country  and 
within  our  own  borders,  where  Congress  has  refused  and  where  a 
question  has  been  debated  on  the  floor  for  three  or  four  days  be- 
cause they  did  not  propose  to  give  a  monopoly  of  a  water  power  to 
any  company.  So  you  are  not  the  only  ones  who  may  feel  that  you 
have  been  imposed  upon  in  this  manner.  A  proper  leasing  of  the 
coal  lands  of  Alaska  may  be  the  solution  of  that  proposition,  but  I 
want  to  be  frank  with  you  and  say  this  tonight,  that  there  appeared 
in  one  session  of  Congress  a  bill  which  proposed  to  fix  a  maximum 
rate  for  coal  to  be  mined  in  that  country.  Did  you  ever, hear  of  a 
man  going  out  and  saying  to  his  boy  or  to  his  agent,  "Take  my 
horse  to  the  market"?.  You  can  not  ask  that  he  shall  not  sell  the 
horse  for  more  than  $100. 


RKLATfOX    OF   COXGRKSS   TO    MIX1XG    IXIH'STKY        393 

1  want  to  say  that  when  the  coal  mines  of  Alaska  are  opened,  if 
thev  are, opened,  by  a  leasing  system,  that  the  government  has  a 
right  to  receive  what  any  one  is  willing  to  give.  These  are  questions 
that  are  coming  before  the  next  session  of  Congress,  when  I  hope 
they  will  be  settled ,  in  a  satisfactory  manner.  There  will  be  extreme 
views  on  conservation  and  there  may  be  extreme  views  on 
the  other  side,  that  believe  all  the  benefit  should  be  turned 
to  those  who  may  get  there  first,  but  through  it  all  will  come  ,a 
compromise,  I  hope,  that  will  result  in  these  coal  mines  being  opened, 
and  then  this  treasury  will  be  preserved  in  some  way  for  the  people 
for  all  time  to  come.  It  does  not  matter  whether  the  lease  is  long 
if  the  property  is  safeguarded,  and,  my  friends,  I  care  but  little 
and  1  don't  believe  that  Congress  will  be  so  much  concerned  in  what 
revenue  might  come  to  the  national  government,  but  I  believe  that 
they  ought  to  be  concerned  about  what  that  coal  shall  be  given  to 
the  people  for,  and  what  price  shall  be  charged  to  them.  It  ought  to 
be  a  reasonable  price.  I  don't  believe  that  we  ought  to  go  out  into 
the  business  of  fixing  prices  upon  all  commodities,  but  I  do  believe 
that  the  people  have  a  right  to'expect  their  lawmakers  to  see  that  no 
monopoly  gains  control  of  the  staple  commodities. 

Now,  my  friends,  I  don't  want  to  take  too  much  of  your  time. 
I  am  glad  to  meet  with  you.  I  am  glad  to  hear  the  expressions 
that  I  have  heard  today,  and  I  want  to  say  that  publicity  should  be 
given  to  the  views  that  you  have  expressed  here  in  this  meeting. 
The  public  should  know  your  views  as  practical  men  upon  mining 
subjects.  Congress  should  know,  because  you  are  practical  miners, 
you  know  what  it  is  to  open  a  mine,  you  know  what  it  is  to  operate 
a  mine,  and  that  knowledge  should  be  given  to  men  who  have  these 
matters  in  charge  and  who  pass  laws  for  the  proper  regulation  of 
this  industry. 

I  thank  you  for  the  honor  of  appearing  before  you  at  this  time, 
and  desire  to  assure  you  that  my  work  in  connection  with  the  com- 
mittee on  mines  and  mining  shall  be  in  the  interest  of  the  develop- 
ment of^the  mining  interests  of  the  country,  and  the  conserving  of 
these  resources  and  above  all  the  conserving  of  the  human  life  of 
those  who  have  to  work  in  the  mines. 


The  Government  and  the  Mining  Industry. 

IJY   HON.    \V1L,L.1AM   HOWARD   TAFT, 
HIKSIDKNT   OF   THE    UNITED    STATES. 


Mr.  Chairman,  and  Ladies  and  Gentlemen : — I  am  not  here  this 
morning  to  make  an  address.  I  am  here  merely  to  extend  greetings 
to  the  American  Mining  Congress.  Circumstances  change  and 
men  change  with  them.  In  the  early  days  of  this  Republic  it  was 
thought,  it  was  advocated,  that  those  who  were  the  least  governed 
were  the  best  governed.  The  laissez-faire  school  which  even  ob- 
jected to  a  government  postoffice  for  a  long  time  had  control,  and  it 
was  thought  that- it  was  not  the  business  of  the  general  government 
to  interest  itself  in  anything  except  the  maintenance  of  the  army 
and  the  navy,  our  foreign  relations,  the  judiciary  and  the  policing 
of  the  territories.  But,  as  I  say,  times  have  changed,  and  we  have 
reached  a  conclusion,  and  I  believe  it  is  a  wise  one,  that  there  are 
a  great  many  things  in  which  the  united  effort  of  the  people  through 
its  government  can  be  of  assistance  to  the  people  at  large,  which 
cannot  be  trusted  to  individual  enterprise  and  individual  investment. 
The  postoffice  department  is  one  thing,  and  growing  out  of  the 
postoffice  department  are  the  postal  savings  banks  and  doubtless 
within  a  reasonable  time  we  shall  extend  that  to  the  parcels  post. 
(Applause.) 

There  is  in  the  constitution  a  clause  that  used  to  act  like  a 
nightmare  on  our  democratic  ancestors.  The  Whig  ancestors  were 
not  so  startled,  but  our  democratic  ancestors  always  thought  that 
the  general  welfare  clause  of  the  constitution  was  an  invention  of 
the  devil  who  got  into  the  constitutional  convention.  (Laughter.) 
But  as  time  has  gone  on  the  usefulness  of -that  omnium-gatherum 
clause  which  gives  to  the  federal  government  the  right  to  spend 
its  money  in  almost  any  direction  that  Congress  thinks  is  useful  to 
the  people  at  large,  has  come  to  be  a  most  admirable  place  from 
which  to  initiate  useful  movements. 

In  1862.  when  the  homestead  law  was  passed  there  was  estab- 
lished a  department  of  agriculture.  It  was  called  a  department, 
but  the  man  at  the  head  of  it  was  not  a  cabinet  minister,  and  he 
did  not  become  so  until  many  years  afterwards.  At  that  time  per- 
haps the  Government  had  enough  interest  of  a  proprietary  char- 
acter in  land  to  assume  the  attitude  of  the  farmer  and  to  spend 


GOVERXMKXT  AXI)  THK  MIXIXO    INDUSTRY  395 

money  to  find  "out  how  farms  ought  to  be  run.  But  now  that  all 
the  public  land  is  practically  disposed  of,  it  is  difficult  to  support 
the  expenditures  of  the  agricultural  department  on  the  theory 
that  the  Government  is  a  proprietor,  and  therefore  authority  for 
the  expenditures  can  only  be  found  in  the  general  wel'fare  clausi- ; 
yet  we  are  going  on  spending  $15,000,000  a  year  in  agriculture. 
We  spent  more  than  $50,000,000  trying  to  wrest  from  nature  the 
secrets  that  will  enable  us  to  increase  the  product  per  acre  of  the 
land  of  which  we  now  have  none  too  much.  You  know  that  from 
the  last  census  it  appears  that  there  was  only  4  per  cent  increase  of 
the  total  acreage  of  farms;  there  was  only  15  per  cent  increase  in 
the  improved  acreage  of  farms.  There  was  21  per  cent  increase  in 
the  population,  and  there  was  100  per  cent  increase  in  the  money 
value  of  farms.  There  was  the  same  increase  in  the  farm  prod- 
ucts. The  farm  values  increased  from  20,000,000,000  to  40,000,- 
000,000;  the  farm  products  per  year  increased  from  4,000,000,000 
to  8,000,000,000.  Now  these  indicate  that  we  are  reaching  the 
limit  of  tillable  soil  in  this  country,  but  if  we  go  on  increasing  our 
population  as  we  have  heretofore,  by  1950  we  shall  have  a  popula- 
tion of  200,000,000.  With  that  number  of  mouths  to  feed  and 
with  substantially  the  same  acreage  on  which  to  feed  them,  I  say 
substantially  the  same,  we  may  increase  by  reclamation  and  irriga- 
tion and  drainage  so  as  to  have  950,000,000  acres  instead  of  883,- 
000,000,  but  we  have  got  to  go  on  and  increase  the  production  per 
acre,  and  the  chief  instrumentality  for  doing  that  is  the  agricul- 
tural department,  acting  in  connection  with  the  agricultural  bu- 
reaus of  the  various  states,  which  does  a  work  not  executory  but 
a  work  of  research,  of  investigation,  of  experimentation  and  of  ex- 
ploitation and  publicity  of  the  results  of  the  work. 

Importance  of  Mininy  Industry. 

Now  no  one,  I  think,  would  contend  that  we  ought  to  give  up 
the  agricultural  department.  I  don't  care  how  much  he  might  wor- 
ship at  Jefferson's  tomb,  or  how  much  he  might  have  in  times  past 
considered  the  welfare  clause  the  invention  of  the  devil,  he  now 
would  admit  that  at  least  so  far  as  the  agricultural  department  is 
concerned,  we  must  continue  in  the  error  which  we  originally  estab- 
lished, because  it  has  been  so  beneficial  to  the  people.  So  it  is  with 
respect  to  the  mining  industry.  Next  to  the  agricultural  industry  it  is 
perhaps  the  most  important  we  have  and  one  which  spreads  over 
all  the  states.  It  divides  itself  into  so  many  different  varieties  and 
is  so  widespread,  that  no  one  state  can  give  to  the  research  in- 
vestigation and  general  pulication  of  the  results,  the  money  and 


396          PROCEEDINGS    AMERICAN     MINING    CONGRESS 

the  time  and  the  attention  and  the  number  of  people  required  in 
order  that  we  should  make  progress.  This  is  especially  true  with 
reference  to  the  saving  of  the  lives  of  miners  engaged  in  the  mining 
industry,  and  I  am  glad  to  note  that  Congress  has  passed  a  law 
creating  a  mining  bureau.  (Applause.)  It  does  not  argue  neces- 
sarily that  we  ought  to  have  a  bureau  for  any  particular  thing 
because  those  who  are  interested  in  that  particular  thing  ask  for 
it.  They  want  a  bureau  for  everything  in  Washington.  I  could 
give  a  dozen  different  subjects ;  one  is  for  children,  and  another — 
well,  that  perhaps  is  nearer  reason  than  most  of  them,  but  one  day 
when  I  was  preparing  my  annual  message  for  Congress,  I  had  a 
solemn  delegation  that  came  in  and  asked  me  to  recommend  to 
Congress  that  we  have  a  bureau  on  earthquakes.  Well,  of  course, 
if  Congress  were  to  yield  to  that  on  the  theory  that  we  ought  to 
have  a  bureau  of  investigation  for  every  subject  of  any  interest  at 
all  to  the  public,  Congress  would  be  engaged  in  creating  new- 
bureaus  every  year,  and  the  difficulty  about  creating  a  new  bureau 
is  that  it  is  like  swarming  into  a  new  house.  There  are  certain 
expenses  that  are  added  to  the  governmental  roll  of  expenses  that 
never  are  reduced  thereafter,  and  that  is  the  reason  why  the  ap- 
propriation committees  are  so  reluctant  and  hesitating  in  respect  to 
the  making  of  any  new  bureau  at  all.  But  you  have  a  new  mining 
bureau  now  established,  and  that  it  will  grow  by  the  application  of 
some  very  diligent  and  earnest  efforts  on  the  part  of  the  present 
head  of  the  mining  bureau,  I  haven't  the  slightest  doubt. 
Metallurgical  Problems  Will  Receive  Attention. 

Your  president  suggested  something  with  reference  to  the 
precious  metals,  and  that  it  will  have  attention  I  haven't  any 
anxiety  on  that  subject  at  all.  Congress  will  be  advised  fully  as 
to  its  necessity,  and  if  by  nothing  else  but  mere  force  of  attrition 
it  will  be  brought  in  the  course  of  a  few  years  to  make  all  the 
provision  that  is  needed  there. 

You  heard  last  night  a  very  interesting  address  from  the  Sec- 
retary of  the  Interior  as  to  mining  and  the  general  subject  of  Alaska. 
I  read  the  address  last  night,  and  I  only  want  to  say  that  I  enjoyed 
the  reading  and  approved  it.  He  said  in  advance  that  he  had  pub- 
lished the  address  with  my  consent,  after  a  general  discussion  with 
me,  and  now  I  want  to  make  the  confirmation  comlpete.  (Ap- 
plause.) If  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  would  straighten  out 
Alaskan  matters  and  eliminate  rodomontade  and  muckraking,  and 
everything  else  that  has  interfered  with  the  progress  of  Alaska,  and 
put  her  on  smooth  seas  and  lead  her  on  to  only  reasonable  develop- 


GOVERXM  KXT  A  X  1 )  T 1 1  I-:   M  I  X  I  XG   I  X  DL'STK  Y  397 

ment,  he  will  earn  my  undying  personal  gratitude  (applause),  as 
well  as  my  patriotic  rejoicing  as  a  humble  citizen  of  the  United 
States.  (Applause.) 

I  believe  Alaska  has  a  great  future  before  it,  but  it  has  been 
hindered  by  a  sharpness  and  acuteness  of  discussion  with  refer- 
ence to  what  shall  be  done,  and  an  unnecessary  ascribing  of  evil 
motives  to  those  who  were  engaged  in  trying  to  promote  its 
interests.  Now  we  have  got  perhaps  to  a  lull  in  the  surface  water 
—I  am  not  speaking  with  confidence  yet — (laughter) — perhaps 
there  is  a  lull  that  we  may  go  ahead  to  something  really  of  sub- 
stantial benefit  for  that  great  empire  there  of  people  who  are 
struggling  to  develop  it  and  who  are  entitled  to  our  sympathy  in 
their  efforts.  (Applause.) 

Now,  as  I  say,  I  am  here  to  extend  very  cordial  greeting,  and 
I  sincerely  hope  that  this  meeting  will  bring  about  a  conference  of 
resolutions  and  conclusions  that  will  be  useful  in  the  general  cause. 
I  presume  that  these  conventions  have  a  great  deal  of  use  in  that 
regard,  and  while  I  am  not  a  technical  miner  and  know  very  little 
about  it,  I  shall  always  hold  myself  in  Washington  ready  to  hear 
suggestions  and  to  help  where  I  can  put  in  my  oar.  T  thank  you 
very  much.  (Applause.) 


YC  01631 


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